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NATURAL RESOURCES
Agriculture
Animals
Energy
Forests
Lands
Minerals
Plants
Water and Atmosphere
minerals
Gifts From the Earth
Minerals
Copyright 2007 by Julie Kerr Casper, Ph.D.
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Chelsea House
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Casper, Julie Kerr.
Minerals : gifts from the Earth / Julie Kerr Casper.
p. cm.(Natural resources)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-13: 978-0-8160-6357-4 (hardcover)
ISBN-10: 0-8160-6357-5 (hardcover)
1. Mines and mineral resources. 2. Minerals. I. Title. II. Series.
TN146.C37 2007
549dc22 2006102275
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Contents
Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction
vi
x
xi
1
2
34
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Classes of Minerals
49
65
82
95
120
137
149
Appendix
Glossary
Further Reading
Index
166
181
187
188
Preface
Natural Resources:
Priceless Gifts from the Earth
PREFACE
vii
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minerals
than ever, we must dedicate our efforts to conserve the land. We still live
in a beautiful, largely natural world, but that world is quickly changing.
World population growth and our desire to live comfortably are exerting pressures on our soil, air, water, and other natural resources. As we
destroy and fragment natural habitats, we continue to push nonhuman
life into ever-smaller pockets. Today, we run the risk of those places
becoming isolated islands on a domesticated landscape.
In order to be responsible caretakers of the planet, it is important to
realize that we humans have a partnership with the Earth and the other
life that shares the planet with us. This series presents a refreshing and
informative way to view the Earths natural resources. Agriculture: The
Food We Grow and Animals We Raise looks at agricultural resources to
see how responsible conservation, such as caring for the soil, will give
us continued food to feed growing populations. Plants: Life From the
Earth examines the multitude of plants that exist and the role they play
in biodiversity. The use of plants in medicines and in other products
that people use every day is also covered.
In Animals: Creatures That Roam the Planet, the series focuses on
the diverse species of animals that live on the planet, including the
important roles they have played in the advancement of civilization.
This book in the series also looks at habitat destruction, exotic species,
animals that are considered in danger of extinction, and how people
can help to keep the environment intact.
Next, in Energy: Powering the Past, Present, and Future, the series
explores the Earths energy resourcessuch as renewable power from
water, ocean energy, solar energy, wind energy, and biofuels; and nonrenewable sources from oil shale, tar sands, and fossil fuels. In addition, the future of energy and high-tech inventions on the horizon are
also explored.
In Lands: Taming the Wilds, the series addresses the land and how
civilizations have been able to tame deserts, mountains, arctic regions,
forests, wetlands, and floodplains. The effects that our actions can
have on the landscape for years to come are also explored. In Forests:
More Than Just Trees, the series examines the Earths forested areas and
PREFACE
ix
Acknowledgments
Introduction
he comfortable existence we enjoy today depends on the abundant use of mineral resources. Nearly everything we use is made
from materials that have been extracted from the Earth. Minerals are important to our lives every day. Rocks contain the minerals
that weather into soils and give vital nourishment to plants. Minerals
provide us with many things essential to life. In fact, minerals touch
our lives in hundreds of ways each day. Life as we know it would not
exist without minerals. Anything that cannot be grownthat is neither
plant nor animalis a mineral or made from minerals and is obtained
directly from the Earth.
Agriculture, construction, manufacturing, communication, transportation, electronics, art, and sciencealmost every area of human
activity depends in some way on minerals. The raw materials we take
out of the ground are as critical to our lifestyle as food and water are.
Humans use huge amounts of minerals each year, such as billions
of tons of sand and gravel. In the United States alone, it takes more
than 2 billion tons of minerals each year to maintain our standard of
livingan equivalent to about 10 tons (9 metric tons) of minerals for
every person. From those minerals come the products we need to live
and those that make our lives comfortable.
Our dependence on minerals begins with one of the most basic
requirements for lifefood. Minerals are needed in many activities
involved with providing what we eat. For example, fertilizers made
from potash, phosphate rock, sulfur, and nitrogen help plants grow.
Metal is used to make tractors and other farm equipment. Food processors use metal machines and equipment, and food is packaged in metal
cans and other containers made from, or with, minerals.
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Introduction
xiii
xiv
minerals
Chapter5 examines the various uses and impacts of minerals in industry, agriculture, science, technology, medical applications, and a host of
other applications.
Chapter 6 outlines the importance of minerals and the multitude
of goods and services they provide that contribute to the quality of our
lives every day. Chapter 7 explores various management issues associated with the management of mineral resources, such as the effects
of minerals on water, soil, plants, and the atmosphere; reclamation of
mining operations and its connection to a healthy environment; natural and recycled resources; and hazardous waste management. Chapter
8 looks at the importance of conservation of mineral resources; the
critical role of recycling, reducing, and reusing mineral resources;
appropriate substitutes to mineral resources; and the development of
new technology and its potential applications to effective conservation.
Finally, Chapter 9 focuses on the future issues of mineral resources;
environmental issues of current mining practices; future mining and
search methodologies; undiscovered mineral resources; minerals in the
ocean and why they represent a new frontier for minerals; and manganese nodules, and other underwater treasures and the impact they can
have on our future.
CHAPTER
Concepts
of Mineral
Resources
minerals
This chapter examines the various mineral resources; what elements and compounds are and their importance to the periodic table;
properties of minerals, metals, and gemstones; the rock cycle and its
role toward determining where various mineral resources are found;
and finally, minerals and materials in the twenty-first century.
Mineral Resources
Minerals are much more than beautiful display piecesthey are the
basic building blocks of the universe. Minerals make up the Earth,
the Moon, and the meteorites that travel through the vast expanses
of space. Mineral resources are the natural minerals obtained from
the Earth by humans. Resources are those substances that people use
directly, or make products out of, to add value, convenience, and quality to their lives. Minerals contain information that allows scientists to
explore and learn about the world. Modern civilization relies heavily on
mineral resources. In fact, if a commodity is not derived from a plant
or animal, then it probably came from a rock or mineral.
Objects made from mineral resources are everywhere; some are
obvious, others are not so obvious. Metal objects, stone for retaining
walls, and sand for playgrounds and baseball fields are obvious uses
of minerals. Items like toothpaste, chalk, cups, glass, and computer
circuitry are also derived from minerals, although not obviously so.
In addition, plastics and many of the fibers from which cloth is made
come from coal or oilalso mineral resources found in the Earth.
Geology plays a critical role in the formation and location of mineral resources. By examining different kinds of rock formations and
by studying the Earths surface, geologists can interpret the geologic
environments in which mineral resources may be found. For a long
time, people were able to find enough mineral resources on the surface
of the Earth. This, however, is not the case with many mineral resources
today. Once a vein of silver or a bed of coal has been mined, it cannot
be replacedit is a nonrenewable resource.
Minerals in the past have been discovered through various prospecting methods. Some mineral deposits are exposed on hillsides
where overburden (the rock lying on top of the deposits) has been
exposed. When looking for mineral resources, such as gold, many
prospectors have panned in rivers. Prospectors over the previous centuries often went out with a mule to carry mining equipmentsuch
as shovels and picksand hunted for minerals using trial, error, and
sometimes luck.
minerals
Because the majority of surface minerals have already been discovered and used, geologists today use a variety of specialized tools
and instruments to help locate mineral resources. Geologists have
to work through hundreds to thousands of feet of overburden using
every geologic, hydrochemical, geochemical, and geophysical method
available to assist in the search. All mineral resourceseven sand and
gravelrequire some form of concentration process to make mining a
mineral deposit economically feasible because the natural abundance
of the sought-after element in the Earths crust is normally too low to
be a commercial deposit.
Geologists use airplanes and helicopters with photographic equipment. They also use magnetic- and gravity-detecting equipment, which
gives information about the Earths subsurface. Geologists sometimes
use pictures taken from satellites in their search for hidden mineral
resources. Fortunately, most of the mineral commoditiesincluding
uraniumgo through a concentration process that provides a much
broader target for exploration than the mineral deposit itself. These
processes leave evidence of their presence over an area a few times to
a few hundred times the size of the mineral deposits themselves. This
allows the prospecting team to locate the actual mineralization much
more efficiently in terms of both time and money.
The value of the wealth in rocks has long been understood.
Countries eager to gain more of the Earths riches for themselves have
fought wars over minerals. In addition, hundreds of thousands of prospectors have rushed to places where diamonds, gold, silver, and other
precious metals and minerals have been discovered.
There are hundreds of mineral resources in the Earth. The table on
page 5 lists some of the most prevalent minerals and what they are used
for, which will be discussed in more detail in later chapters.
Minerals affect all aspects of our lives, and without knowing it
most people use a tremendous amount of mineral resources every day,
all year long. The figure on page 6 shows the yearly per capita consumption of new minerals that is necessary to maintain present-day
standards of living.
Use
Aluminum
Road-paving material
Basalt
Bismuth
Brines
Salts
Cement
Construction material
Clay Paper coaters and fillers, ceramic products, rubber fillers, bricks, decorative
tile
Coal
Heat, energy
Copper
Gemstones
Gold
Iron
Sand
Talc Filler in roofing materials, paper, plastic, synthetic rubber, and ceramic
materials
Titanium
minerals
Per capita consumption of raw minerals. Every year, more than 48,000
pounds (21,772 kilograms) of new minerals must be provided for every
person in the United States in order to maintain the standard of living we
enjoy today.
minerals
The periodic table is a chart of all the known elements. The elements are arranged in order of their atomic numbers, but in rows, so
that elements with similar properties are underneath each other. Each block in the table contains information including the elements
name, chemical symbol, atomic number, and atomic mass. It also designates which elements are metals (blue), nonmetals (yellow),
and metalloids (pink). The position of an element in the periodic table gives an idea of what its properties are likely to be.
10
minerals
are gases, but some are solid, and onebromineis a liquid. Nonmetals
do not have consistent properties because they have a wide range of
melting and boiling points.
Nonmetals (with the exception of carbon) are not good conductors
of electricity or heat. In addition, all nonmetals are nonmagnetic. The
table on page 16 illustrates the properties of metals and nonmetals.
Elements that have properties of both metals and nonmetals are
called metalloids, or semimetals. Metalloids are very valuable in the
manufacture of semiconductors. A semiconductor is a material that
can conduct some electricity better than an insulator (a poor conductor of electricity) can, but not as much or as well as a metal can.
Semiconductors are mainly used in electronic components and microchips in the computer industry.
Some metals react well with common chemicals, such as air, water,
and acids. Others do not react at all. The reactivity series represents
some common metals in order of how reactive they are, or how well
they react with other chemicals.
Metals at the top of the series (potassium, sodium) are extremely
reactive and are located in Group 1 of the periodic table. They react
quickly with air to form metal oxides and so they must be kept away
from air; they are stored in oil. When highly reactive metals are put in
acid, chemical reactions occur, which produce hydrogen gas and excessive heat. The heat ignites the hydrogen and makes it explode. The
Group type
17
The halogens
18
This figure illustrates the reactivity series of common metals. The elements
at the top are the most reactive with other chemicals, such as acids, air, and
water. Potassium and sodium are extremely reactive. They are found in Group
1 of the periodic table and react quickly with the air to make metal oxides. The
metals at the bottom, such as gold and silver, are not reactive at all. They do
not even react with strong acids such as hydrochloric acid.
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12
minerals
quantities all around the Earth, but other elements only occur in tiny
amounts in limited locations, which affects their value as natural
resources. In addition, some elements occur naturally with others as a
mixture. For example, pure gold is found in the ground. Most elements,
however, are found in compounds.
Dmitri Mendeleyev
Dmitri Mendeleyev was a Russian scientist who first realized that if all
the known elements were arranged in a tableby atomic weight
elements with similar properties and characteristics would group
together. Elements that lie next to one another in the table would share
certain qualities. He began by first writing all the elements and their
atomic weights onto a series of index cards. Next, he tried to arrange
the index cards in different patterns in order to determine the best fit.
He eventually ended up with an arrangement that he was satisfied
with, in which elements with similar properties were grouped in vertical
columns. Developed in 1869, this became known as the periodic table.
One of the most amazing things about Mendeleyevs table
was that it had blank areas in which a particular substance should
theoretically exist. He realized that the gaps were not errors but instead
represented elements that had not yet been discovered. Because of
the way he arranged his table, scientists were able to figure out what
characteristics these theoretical elements should have. Later, as
more and more elements were discovered, they did indeed have the
properties Mendeleyev predicted they would, adding further credence
to his table.
Mendeleyevs table was highly reliable. In the places where he had
difficulty in placing an element, it turned out that what was previously
believed about the element was wrong. Then, when more accurate
information became available, the elements in question fit perfectly.
Mendeleyevs initial periodic table has, however, been modified
over the years as scientists have gained more knowledge of the
elements. Even still, his work represents one of the greatest advances
to science and has proved to be a crucial tool.
Chemicals combine to release the energy necessary for liftoff of the space
shuttle. (Courtesy of NASA)
Humans use nearly all the elements for various applications, such as
in industry, agriculture, manufacturing, science, and medicine. Before
elements can be useful as resources, they must be extracted (dug up)
from where they are found. Different chemical and physical processes
are used to extract the elements.
Metalshighly useful resourcesare extracted from rocks in the
Earths crust. Rocks contain minerals called ores. An ore is a compound
made up of a metal combined with other elements. People use many
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This chart identifies the most common elements in the Earths crust. Oxygen
is the most commonaccounting for nearly half of the compositionfollowed
by silicon.
metals that are easy to extract (separate) from ores to be used for
construction, industry, and many other applications. Metals are often
mixed with each otheror even with nonmetalsto produce alloys.
Alloys have more useful properties than the metals they are made from,
such as increased strength.
Common metals include iron, copper, and aluminum. Iron is one
of the most widely used metals. Most iron is used in the production of
steelsteel is an alloy containing about 99% iron and 1% carbon. Steel
Because of its strength and durability, steel (an alloy of iron and carbon) is crit-
ical in the construction of high-rise buildings. (Courtesy of Natures Images)
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minerals
Nonmetals
High densities
Low densities
of its extreme hardness. Although they are both carbon, the difference between graphite and diamond is due to the atoms being joined
together in different ways.
Hydrogen is the simplest of all elements (it is the first one listed in
the periodic table). At room temperature, it is a colorless, odorless gas
that is extremely flammable. Hydrogen is used to produce chemicals
and fertilizer. It is extracted from natural gas.
Phosphorus is a solid that occurs in white and red forms. Red phosphorus is used to make matches and distress flares. White phosphorus is
poisonous. It can be used to fill grenades. Nitrogen is a colorless, odorless
gas, which composes 78% of the air in the atmosphere. Nitrogen is vital
for the health of plants. In industry, it is used to create ammonia and
nitric acid, which can be used to manufacture fertilizers and explosives.
Oxygen is also a colorless, odorless gas that makes up 21% of the air we
breathe. It is the most common element in the rocks of the Earths crust.
Sulfur is a yellow solid, commonly found in areas of volcanic activity. Yellowstone National Park has a good display of sulfuric hot pots.
Sulfur has many uses; it is used in the manufacture of sulfuric acid, and
as an additive to the rubber in tires to extend the life of the rubber. The
noble gases are all unreactive. This means that they almost never react
with other elements to make compounds. They are commonly used in
the bulbs of illuminated advertising signs.
The halogenselements in Group 17include fluorine, chlorine,
and iodine. Fluorine is used in the production of nonstick coatings,
chlorine is used as a disinfectant (such as commonly used in swimming
pools), iodine is used in peoples diets and also as an antiseptic (to sterilize cuts). In addition, many types of light bulbssuch as those in car
headlightsare filled with halogen gases.
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minerals
sand. Most minerals (like quartz or mica) are abundant and common.
Others, such as diamonds, rubies, sapphires, gold, and silver, are rare and
very valuable. An important attribute of minerals is that they contain
information about the chemical and physical conditions in the region of
the Earth where they formed. Specific conditions must exist for a mineral
to form. Minerals can help geologists determine which tectonic environment a given rock was created in. They can also relate information about
the inaccessible portions of the Earth. National economies can be based
on exploitation of mineral wealth; for instance, South Africa is a rich
nation because of its abundant gold and diamond mineral resources.
The two most important characteristics of minerals are their composition and structure. The composition of minerals describes the
kinds of chemical elements present and their proportions, whereas
the structure of minerals describes the way in which the atoms of the
chemical elements are packed together.
There are more than 3,500 known minerals, most made out of the
eight most common mineral-forming elements. These eight elements
Symbol
Oxygen
46.6
Silicon
Si
27.7
Aluminum
Al 8.1
Iron
Fe 5.0
Calcium
Ca 3.6
Sodium
Na 2.8
Potassium
K 2.6
Magnesium
Mg 2.1
Source: U.S. Geological Survey
make up more than 98% of the mass of the continental crust. The
eight most common mineral-forming elements are listed in the table
on page 18.
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minerals
Cleavage is the tendency of a mineral to break in preferred directions along bright, reflective planar surfaces. It results from the way in
which the molecules of a mineral pack together. Cleavage occurs along
planes where the bonds between the atoms are relatively weak.
Luster is the quality and intensity of light reflected from a mineral.
It results from the way in which light is reflected from the molecules of
a mineral. Typical lusters include metallic (like a polished metal), vitreous (like a polished glass), resinous (like resin), pearly (like a pearl),
and greasy (oily).
Color results from the wavelengths of light that are reflected from
the molecules of a mineral. Color is not reliable for identification of
minerals, however, since it is commonly determined by elements that
are not primary to the chemical composition of the mineral. This phenomenon is known as ionic substitution. For example, sapphires and
rubies are both varieties of the mineral corundum (aluminum oxide),
but are different colors due to different ionic substitutions. The color
of the streak that a mineral leaves on a porcelain plate, however, can be
used to identify opaque minerals with metallic lusters.
The density of a mineral is a measure of mass per unit volume. In
other words, density describes how heavy a mineral feels. Specific gravity is an indirect measure of density; it is the ratio of the weight of a
substance to the weight of an equal volume of water.
Streak is the color of a minerals powder when rubbing it across the
surface of an unglazed porcelain tile. Streak is a better diagnostic than
color, because it is more consistent.
Hardness is a measure of the minerals relative resistance to
scratching. It results from the cohesion of the molecules in a mineral.
Hardness is governed by the strength of bonds between atoms and is
very distinctive and useful for mineral identification. A minerals hardness can be determined by the ease with which one mineral can scratch
another. For instance, talc (used for talcum powder) is the softest mineral, whereas diamond is the hardest mineral. Hardness is commonly
measured using Mohs scale (see table on page 22).
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minerals
Gemstones
A natural gemstone is a mineral or stone, or organic matter that can
be cut and polished for use as jewelry or another ornament. A precious
gemstone has beauty, durability (resistance to abrasion, fracturing, and
chemical reactions), and rarity, whereas a semiprecious gemstone has
only one or two of these qualities. A gem is a gemstone that has been
cut and polished.
Some minerals can be very beautiful, but they may be too soft and
may scratch easilysuch as fluorite. Most gemstones have a hardness
on the Mohs scale above 5 and a high index of refraction (the higher
the index of refraction, the greater the sparkle). All natural gemstones,
Mohs Scale
10
Diamond
Topaz
Quartz
6.5
Glass
Potassium feldspar
5.5
Pocketknife
Apatite
4.5
Teeth, bones
Fluoride
3.5
Penny
Calcite
2.5
Fingernail
Gypsum
Talc
(Entries in italics are common items that are included for
comparison to where the minerals fall in the hardness scale.)
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Red horn coral is very rare, found in a remote site on a mountaintop in Utah, in
the Uinta Mountains. This area was once in a tropical biome under an ocean,
which allowed the coral to form. It is found in small formations that look like
horns. Crusted on the outside with deposits from an ancient sea, it is polished
to reveal the beautiful coral inside. Each piece of coral has a unique design
within it ranging from starburst shapes to clusters of curious bubbles. This rare
coral is popular in custom jewelry. This photo shows a polished piece of natu-
ral red horn coral in the center, surrounded by custom-made coral pendants
crafted by Navajo silversmiths. Each piece has its own unique pattern, which is
not visible until the jeweler polishes it. (Courtesy of Natures Images)
Precious Metals
Precious metals, like gemstones, are classified in part by their rarity,
which can impart a high economic value. Durability and ductility are
also important characteristics. Durability keeps metal from corroding
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minerals
This map of the United States illustrates the locations of mineralized areas.
Minerals are distributed unevenly across geographical locations.
metals (metals that occur uncombined with any other elements) and
compounds into nearby fractures. These mineral-laden solutions are
called hydrothermal fluids. These fluids usually exit via the surface of
the ground, but sometimes they become trapped in the rocks and minerals begin to form. When this happens, the solutions both cool and
solidify, or they react with minerals in the surrounding rocks.
Mineral deposits are also associated with volcanoes. If a volcano
erupts underwater and it interacts with the seawater, a hydrothermal
solution is produced and sulfides are created. This phenomenon
can also be seen at hot springs on land (such as those at Yellowstone
National Park).
A large deposit of a significant mineral is referred to as a lode.
Many of the famous gold and silver rushes in the 1800s in California,
Nevada, and Alaska were centered on famous lodes. Lodes can contain
Different mineral commodities found within the United States: (a) nonprecious
metals; (b) precious metals.
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31
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minerals
Weathering and erosion can wash minerals down a slope and deposit them
in a sea or riverbed.
fact, the majority of all the gold mined in the world has come from
placer deposits.
33
CHAPTER
The History of
Minerals and
Their Impact on
Civilization
34
Past civilizations also used various minerals, such as jade and turquoise,
for trading, or bartering. Possession of gems was also an indicator of
wealth. Building materials from minerals, such as soil, clay, and other
materials to make adobe, were also used by past civilizations.
Historians have divided human history into several periods based
on which metals were used during each period, such as the Stone Age
(premetallic), which was followed by the Bronze Age in about 3000 b.c.,
during which people learned to make tools out of bronze. During the
Iron Agefrom 1500 to 1000 b.c.people began to use iron to make
stronger tools.
Many minerals have directly affected human lives. One example is
salt. Salt has been prized for thousands of years. Not only does salt add
flavor to food, it has also been used for centuries to prevent spoiling.
Salt used to be so valuable that it was actually used as money in some
countries. Roman soldiers were paid with salt. In fact, the word salary
came from the Latin word salarium, which means salt money. Salt is
inexpensive now, but in ancient times it was just as valuable as gold.
This chapter discusses the various major developments in civilization and their connection to minerals. It also examines the worlds
most famous gold rushes; historical mining in the United States; prospecting today; and the uses of minerals, elements, and materials in the
twentieth century.
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minerals
During the Stone Age, tools and weapons (such as arrowheads) were made
of stones such as obsidian. Pottery was crafted from clay and often painted in
beautiful, intricate designs. Colors for the pottery were derived from minerals
and organic materials. (Courtesy of Natures Images)
weapons, while basalt and sandstone were used for ground stone tools,
such as quern-stones used for grinding grain. Wood, bone, antler, and
shell were also used to make tools and weapons. During the later parts
of this age, humans learned how to use natural sediments such as clay
to make crude pottery.
The Stone Age is significant because it represents the first known
widespread use of technology in human history and the consequent
spread of civilization from East Africa to the rest of the world. The
Stone Age ended when humans began to learn how to smelt copper ore
to produce metal.
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objects have been found in Asia Minor that date from before 3000 b.c.
Initially, this alloy was used sparinglymostly for decorative purposes,
because the tin needed to make it was not easy to obtain.
The first objects produced by ancient cultures included axes,
knives, and agricultural tools. As artisans gained experience in bronzeworking technology, they produced many ornate and highly decorative
objects for administrative, religious, and other ceremonial purposes.
The Bronze Age ended when iron technology was developed.
39
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minerals
shaping machines powered by these engines enabled all the metal parts
of the engines to be consistently and accurately cut, which made it possible to build larger and more powerful engines.
Industrialization led to the creation of the factory, where raw materials went in at one end, were smelted, and were turned into pots, tools,
wire, and other useful goods. The factory system was largely responsible for the rise of the modern city, because workers quickly moved
into cities in order to be close to the factories where they worked.
Gold Rushes
A gold rush is a period of rapid migration of miners into an area where
commercial quantities of gold have been discovered. During the 1800s,
many gold rushes took place in the United States, Canada, Australia,
New Zealand, and Africa. These became some of the most famous
gold rushes in history. In North America, gold rushes attracted a huge
number of settlers who then ended up contributing to the culture of
the locations in which they lived. During this time period, money was
based on gold, so there was also a significant economic incentive to
locate newly mined gold.
The first real gold rush in the United States occurred in the
Appalachian Mountains during the 1830s. The California gold rush of
18481849 in the Sierra Nevada then followed, with multitudes of settlers rushing to the American West. The California gold rush spurred
the rapid settlement of California by Americans, which resulted in
the area becoming an official state in 1850, when it was admitted into
the Union.
Several gold rushes occurred in North America, particularly in
the American West; they then moved northward through the Rocky
Mountain area and into British Columbia, Canada. A gold rush typically began with the discovery of free gold by a single individual.
These types of finds were generally placer gold in the beds of streams
that descend from a nearby mountain range. The word quickly got out
and spread.
The result was always the samethe discovery spurred the immediate influx of other prospectors who rushed to the area to either join
existing prospecting groups or to form new ones. The reality was that
the so-called free gold supply in these placer claims would soon become
depleted, and the initial frenzied phase would be replaced by a longer
period of prospecting in the upper canyon walls for the lode gold (the
main body of the gold deposit).
A gold rush usually lasted only a few years. Sometimes in these mining communities, if the geologic conditions were right, the mining area
would transition to further calculated prospecting and mining for silver.
The California gold rush spanned a period of time from 1848 to 1858.
It started at Sutters Mill near Coloma, California, on January24, 1848,
when James W. Marshall (an employee of Sacramento agriculturist
John Sutter) found a gold nugget. Prospecting quickly expanded northward where gold nuggets were also discovered in Yreka, California.
Perhaps the biggest highlight of the gold rush era was the Klondike
(it is often referred to as the last grand adventure by the National Park
Service). Much of this era is brought to life in Jack Londons famous
novels, Call of the Wild and White Fang. The Klondike began in 1896,
when three menSkookum Jim Mason, Dawson Charlie, and George
Washington Carmackfound gold in a tributary of the Klondike River
in Canadas Yukon Territory. Their discovery set off the greatest gold
rush in history.
Beginning in 1897, a hoard of hopeful gold seekersunaware that
most of the good Klondike claims were already stakedboarded ships at
Seattle and other Pacific port cities and headed north in search of riches
that were said to be had for the taking. All through the summer and
into the winter of 18971898, stampeders poured into the newly created
Alaskan tent and shack towns of Skagway and Dyea. These ports were the
beginning points for the 600-mile (966 km) trek to the fabled goldfields.
A former steamboat captain named William Moore founded
Skagway, which is located at the head of the White Pass Trail. His
small homestead was inundated with about 10,000 transient residents
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them over the rocky terrain until they dropped. More than 3,000 animals died on this trail; many of their bones still lie at the bottom of
Dead Horse Gulch.
During the first year of the rush, an estimated 20,000 to 30,000
gold seekers spent an average of three months packing their supplies
up the trails and over the passes to the lakes in extremely difficult
conditions. The distance from tidewater to the lake was only about 35
miles (56 km), but each individual trudged hundreds of miles back and
forth along the trails, moving his gear from cache to cache. Once the
prospectors had hauled all their gear to the lakes, they built, or bought,
boats to float the remaining 560 miles (901 km) downriver to Dawson
City and the Klondike mining district where an almost limitless supply
of gold nuggets was said to lie.
By midsummer of 1898, there were 18,000 people at Dawson,
with more than 5,000 working the diggings. By August, many of the
Placers
A placer is a surface mineral deposit formed by the mechanical
concentration of heavy minerals eroded from weathered rock masses
by currents in streams, along beaches, or by wind. Many types of
valuable minerals, including gold, platinum, cassiterite, ilmenite, zircon,
rutile, sapphire, ruby, and diamond, are much denser than the average
sand or sediment in an area. When air or water currents move these
sediments, the heavy minerals tend to be concentrated by several
processes. Denser grains become trapped in riffles, cracks, and in
areas of low-flow velocity where they can settle out. For the placer
minerals to be concentrated, they must also be resistant to chemical
weathering, mechanical abrasion, and fragmentation during transport
to keep from being destroyed. Famous alluvial placer deposits include
the California and Klondike alluvial gold deposits, the sites of the famous
gold rushes of the later half of the 1800s.
The largest gold placer deposit in the world is an ancient, 2.6- to
2.7-billion-year-old paleoplacer system found in the Witwatersrand
basin of South Africa. It has accounted for nearly half of the worlds
production of gold. Beach placers include the diamonds found in
ancient offshore beach deposits off southwest Africa; gold in beach
ridges near Nome, Alaska; and placers along the southeast shores of
Madagascar. An additional class of placers includes colluvial deposits,
in which weathered material accumulates on a slope.
Placer mining is one of the oldest forms of mining. Running
water is used to wash away the less-dense material, leaving the
gold behind. Placer mining has been responsible for the production
of much of the worlds gold, tin, titanium, platinum, diamonds, rubies,
emeralds, and sapphires.
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The Chilkoot Trail profile illustrates the drastic changes in elevations the
prospectors had to negotiatemuch of it done in severe winterlike conditions.
Each gold seeker was required to have a years worth of supplies before
being allowed to proceed to the Klondike from coastal ports in Alaska, such
as Skagway.
s tampeders had started for home, most of them broke. The next year
saw a still larger exodus of miners leaving the area. The great Klondike
gold rush ended as suddenly as it had begun.
resources. Most people never traveled more than 20 miles (32 km)
from where they were born. Today, more than 200 years later, times
have greatly changed. In order to maintain our current standard of
living, raw materials must be found, mined, and processed each day in
much greater amounts than ever before and the need continues to rise.
For example, the table below compares the average amounts of materials used in 1776 per person in the United States versus the amounts
used today.
Aluminum (bauxite)
0 pounds (0 kilograms)
Cement
12 pounds (5 kg)
Clay
Coal
Copper
20 pounds (9 kg)
Iron ore
20 pounds (9 kg)
Lead
11 pounds (5 kg)
Phosphate
0 pounds (0 kg)
Potash
Salt
4 pounds (2 kg)
Sulfur
Zinc
11 pounds (5 kg)
Source: Mineral Information Institute
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CHAPTER
classes of
minerals
here are two general classes of resources: renewable and nonrenewable. A renewable resource is a resource that can be
replenished. It is a resource that can be replaced by natural
ecological cycles, Earth system cycles, and good management practices.
The opposite of this is a nonrenewable resourcea resource that cannot be replenished (once it is gone, it is gone for good). For practical
applications, scientists consider a renewable resource as one that can
be replenished within one generation (about 2030 years). Although
the same geologic processes that formed nonrenewable resources such
as fossil fuels and nuclear energy are still working on Earth today, they
take millions of years to form, so they are not considered renewable
resources for the present life on Earth.
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classes of minerals
mineral resources we use today were created long ago, and once we have
used them all, there will not be anymore within the near future.
The minerals we depend on are not renewable, so it is important
that our use of them be responsible and sustainable. Besides benefiting
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Minerals can be classified according to their chemical composition and crystal structure and can be subdivided into 10 types of
classes: (1) elements, (2) sulfides, (3) halides, (4) oxides, (5) carbonates, (6) sulfates, (7) phosphates, (8) silicates, (9) organics, and
(10) mineraloids.
classes of minerals
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classes of minerals
and mercury, can all form sulfide ores. They form in hydrothermal
veins below the water table where they are easily oxidized to sulfates.
Sulfosalts are compounds in which metallic elements combine with
sulfur plus a semimetallic element (such as antimony and arsenic).
Their properties are similar to those of sulfides.
There are many uses for sulfides. For example, cadmium sulfide is
used in photocells, and calcium polysulfide (lime sulfur) is used in
gardening. Carbon disulfide is used as a solvent; lead sulfide is used in
infrared sensors; sodium sulfide is used as an industrial chemical to
make dyes, in crude petroleum processing, and in leather tanning; and
zinc sulfide is used for photo luminescent strips for emergency lighting
and luminous watch dials.
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classes of minerals
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classes of minerals
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Selenite rose (sulfate). Selenite is soft and can easily be scratched with a
fingernail. The thin crystals can be slightly flexible but will snap if bent too
far. Some crystals grow in curved patterns and flowerlike petals. In dry desert
conditions, sand may become trapped inside the crystals as they form. Sandy
selenite formations can take on the shape of an hourglass or the more familiar
desert rose shape. (Photo courtesy of Natures Images)
for its diversity of karst landscapes.) The carbonate class also includes
the nitrate and borate minerals.
classes of minerals
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used as an agent to kill algae, and are used in therapeutic baths (these
are called Epsom salts).
classes of minerals
Amber
Melanophlogite
Mellite
Oxammite
Wheatleyite
Whewellite
Amber, or fossilized tree sap, is a beautiful stone that is cut and polished
and used as a valuable gemstone. It is also a fossil and can contain many
preserved insects and other animals and plants that are tens of millions
of years old. The movie Jurassic Park (1993) made fossils very well
known. The odd inclusions that are often seen in amber usually add to
ambers unique look and also increase its value.
Melanophlogite is a very rare mineral found at only a few sites. It
forms crystals that appear cubic. Whewellite is the best known of the
crystalline organic minerals. It is naturally formed as a crystalline solid,
with no direct biological connection, and is composed of a set chemical formula. The source of the mineral comes from coal seams and
sedimentary nodules and concretions. It has also been found in some
hydrothermal veins.
The Mineraloids
The members of this class are often mistaken for minerals and are
sometimes classified as minerals, but they lack the necessary crystalline
structure to be classified as true minerals. Pearl and jettwo of the
better-known mineraloidsare also the products of organic processes.
These materials are found naturally; some are treated as gemstones and
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CHAPTER
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to the Mineral Information Institute, the United States despite its vast
resources, has to import the following mineral commodities:
There are a number of environmental issues associated with mining and minerals extraction. Extracting minerals from the surface of the
Earth or below the surface requires moving a lot of earth. Extracting 1
ton of copper, for example, requires moving and processing about 350
tons of ore.
Although individual people or small business can sometimes conduct exploration and mining, most modern-day mines are large enterprises requiring large amounts of money in order to operate. Because
of this, largeoften multinationalcompanies and various governments dominate the mining industry.
This chapter discusses the development of mineral resources and
the mining and refining procedures that are necessary to make them
useful resources.
major processes are involved in developing mineral resources: exploration, extraction, processing, refining, manufacturing, and marketing.
First, the mineral and energy resources must be locateda step
called exploration. Geologists must be well trained in order to locate
mineral resources. They explore the Earth to find deposits or wells that
can be produced.
The next step is extraction. After the resources are located, they
must be removed from the Earth. People build surface or underground
mines to extract mineral resources. For example, to obtain oil, holes are
drilled deep into the Earth. Mining and drilling are two ways mineral
resources are extracted.
Usually, valuable minerals are in ordinary-looking rock when they are
removed from the Earth. They are often hidden as tiny particles within the
rock. The valuable minerals are removed from the rock and concentrated.
This is called processing, which involves crushing, grinding, and milling.
Some minerals have to be smelted and refined before they can be
made into useful products. For instance, when oil is pumped from the
Earth, it is in crude form. The crude oil is sent to a refinery where it is
processed into oils, solvents, fuels, and petrochemicals. Copper ore is
removed from the Earth with large amounts of rock. The copper must
be extracted and processed in order to make it useful.
After the mineral and energy resources are refined, these raw materials are made into products. Their transformation into consumer
products is nearly limitless; diverse products include cars, airplanes,
computers, fertilizer, and plastic. This is called manufacturing.
Once the products are made, they are sold or marketed. The mineral
and energy resource companies sell the mineral resources to a manufacturer. The manufacturer makes a product and sells it to stores, which
then sell the products to the publica process called marketing.
Mining
Mineral deposits are mined to obtain the raw materials that have
become indispensable to modern industrial society. To be profitable,
the deposit must be big enough to be mined for many years, it must
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Prospecting
Prospecting is the act of searching for minerals or ore deposits. In the
past, prospectors explored vast mountainous and canyon areas, carrying picks, shovels, and gold pans. The early exploration for petroleum
required drilling hundreds of holes. Most of the early prospectors had
no trainingthey relied mostly on luck.
Prospectors today rely on training and the study of geology and
prospecting technology. They use several different methods. Prospectors
research areas near past known mineral deposits, rely heavily on geologic mapping, complete rock assay analysis, drill samples from the
Types of Mining
Depending on the commodity, mining can be done at the surface or
underground. Surface methods include strip mining, hill-and-valley
mining, and open-pit mining. Underground mining includes room
and pillar mining, long-wall mining, removal as an emulsion, and
solution mining.
Surface methods
Surface mining costs less than underground mining. Strip mining is
a system used when level beds of minerals lie just below the surface
over a large area. Strip mining opens up large areas of ground. Today,
the land is reclaimed after use, in a process known as a conservationoriented technique. In this process, a strip of land is dug down to the
mineral level. The overlying waste rock and soil is put to one side and
stored for return when the site is reclaimed after mining.
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Conservation strip mining. As trenches are dug, previously dug trenches are
filled in and the land reclaimed.
The mineral is then dug out and the trench widened. As the mining
progresses, the trench is refilled; the overburden from the most recent strip
fills the strip just mined, in a dig-and-refill sequence. As a result, only a
limited amount of overburden has to be placed on the surface of the land
at any given time. When the site is finished, the final strip is filled in with
the overburden extracted from the first strip, and the topsoil is replaced.
When the landscape is composed of hills and valleys, the mineral
is sometimes extracted across the valley side, following the contour of
the hill. In this case, the whole top of a hill may be removed gradually,
and the fill placed in nearby valleys.
Kennecott copper open-pit mine. Located near Salt Lake City, Utah, it is the
largest man-made excavation in the world; and it is even visible to astronauts
in outer space. This mine was the birthplace for the concept of open-pit min-
ing. This photo was taken with color infrared film; vegetation appears red,
and bare earth is bluish white. The concentric rings that spiral down into the
interior of the mine are highly visible; they took decades to dig. (Courtesy of
Natures Image)
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Stone quarries are used to obtain building materials for many items. They
are similar to open-pit mines and are mined for sand, gravel, limestone, and
other commodities that are used in building materials, such as cement. (Photo
courtesy of Natures Images)
material that can weigh more than 100 tons (90 metric tons). The dump
trucks used to transport the ore are mammothsome are the size of a
house. This equipment is so big that it is possible to remove half a million tons of material a day. The pit has to slope inward at an angle to
ensure that the rock remains stable so the pit does not cave in.
Stone quarrying is similar to open-pit mining. Construction companies often operate quarries. Quarrying is done to collect stone for
building and cement, which is made for use in concrete and other building materials. The most useful stones are granite, limestone, sandstone,
marble, and slate. The quarry is normally designed to take special
advantage of the natural stone, and so benches vary with the block size
of the stone.
Underground mining
Underground mining uses horizontal, sloped, and vertical tunnels to
locate and extract the ore. Underground mining must follow the ore
vein or coal seam. Following the seam underground can be difficult
and costly if the rock is faulted.
Most underground mines have an access shaft that is sunk from the
surface down to the many levels that can be worked. Each of the horizontal levels is connected to the shaft by a tunnel called the drift. The
shaft contains a cage for carrying both the workers and ore between the
different levels. The shafts also contain pipes to pump in air, carry electricity, and pump out water. With underground mining, it is more costly
to obtain the ore, so miners attempt to access the ore in the most feasible
way possible, while bringing as little waste as necessary to the surface.
One common method of underground mining is called the roomand-pillar method, which keeps the shaft from collapsing underground
and trapping the miners. In this procedure, a system of pillars is left
unmined. These undisturbed pillars are what hold up the ceiling.
Another underground method is called longwall mining. In this procedure, a long wall is established for mining, using an access tunnel at
each end. The wall is then mined, and the roof is held up by mechanical
jacks. As the long wall is mined out, the jacks are removed, allowing the
roof behind to collapse in a controlled way. When the rocks are hard,
mining has to be done with pneumatic drills and blasting.
Some minerals are insoluble and can be removed as an emulsion,
which is a mixture of water and tiny particles of material. This process
operates on the fact that the mineral has a low melting point, but is
insoluble. Superheated water at 329F (165C) is pumped underground
through a pipe, which melts the mineral. Because the mineral is insoluble, it remains chemically uncombined. Inside the main pipe are two
smaller pipes. Compressed air is pumped down a central pipe, and a
mixture of the liquid mineral, water, and air is pushed up through the
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FPO Figure 28
remaining pipe. This is called the Frasch process, named after its inventor Herman Frasch, an American chemist, in 1891.
Brine-solution mining is another method of underground recovery
of minerals. In particular, salt, potash, and trona (sodium carbonate)
are all soluble and so can be removed in solution. A well is sunk to the
mineral bed. It is lined (cased), and pipes are inserted into the well.
Water is then injected into the well through part of the tube system.
Because the brine is denser than the freshwater, it sinks to the bottom.
The brine is then sucked up through another part of the tube system.
The areas where the solution is extracted can be huge, up to 328 feet
(100 m) across. When the brine reaches the surface, the water is evaporated away using special vacuum flasks.
Mining Processes
Specific mining processes must occur in order to obtain mineral
resources. They must be extracted from the Earth, processed and
refined, and then transformed into finished products.
Extraction
Metals are extracted from their ores using chemical reactions. In a reaction to extract metal from its ore, the ore serves as one of the reactants,
and the metal becomes one of the products. The higher in the reactivity
series the metal is, the more difficult it is to extract from its ore. Because
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of this, these metals are often more expensive to produce and buy. The
main methods of extracting metals from their ores are decomposition,
displacement, and electrolysis. All the methods of extracting metals
from their ores are also known as smelting.
A decomposition reaction is a reaction in which a compound splits
up to make two or more different elements or more simple compounds.
Thermal decomposition is decomposition that happens when a material is heated. This type of decomposition works only for metals that
are very unreactive. The ores of more reactive metalssuch as iron and
copperwould have to be heated to an extremely high temperature in
order to make them decompose.
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air (the roasting is the process that adds the oxygen). The ore must
be heated above its melting point. When the ore melts, it forms two
layersone containing the metal, the other containing the rest (this
waste is called slag).
Iron is the most commonly smelted metal. It is smelted in a blast
furnace. Some liquid metal ores can be heated, which turns the metal
into a vapor. The vapor is then retrieved. For example, when zinc is
smelted, the zinc vaporizes and is condensed. Smelting removes almost
all of the impurities.
Refining
This final process is what produces the pure metal. Commonly refined
materials include metals, petroleum, and silicon.
Electrolysis is one method of refining. If an electric current is
passed through the molten material, pure metal will be deposited on
one electrode. Refining also releases gold, silver, and other impurities
from some commodities. This is an added benefit whose value can be
utilized by the mining company.
In the solution method, the roasted material can be dissolved in an
acid and the metal withdrawn from the liquid. Oxides and sulfates are
commonly refined by solution. Alloying is the process of joining different metals. Alloys are often used because they create stronger metals.
One of the most-used alloys today is steel. Steel is an alloy of iron and
carbon. Hundreds of millions of tons of steel are produced every year
for a multitude of different uses, such as in the construction industry.
Petroleum also needs to be refined in order to transform it into
useful products. The main process in a petroleum refinery is distillation, which is accomplished in tall towers. The crude oil is heated and
put in the lower part of the tower; the lightest portions are the first to
boil off. As they rise through the tower, they cool and condense onto
different shelves.
The products that do not boil off are collected and sent to be
broken down into smaller moleculesa process called cracking. The
cracked fractions are then sent back for refining.
Postprocessing
The final phase of creating useful products is postprocessing. The metal
made in most production plants is poured into molds to make masses
called ingots. In a steel plant, the steel is fed into a machine that shapes
it into sheets or bars. This is called continuous casting. Ingots, bars,
and sheets of metal are the raw materials for many finished items.
Casting, forging, and rolling are the three main methods of processing metal. In casting, metal is heated until it melts and is then
poured into a mold. The inside of the mold has a hole the same shape
as the object to be cast. The hole is filled with metal, which then cools,
forming the object. In forging, the metal is heated until it glows red
hot, but not enough to melt it. When it is heated, it becomes more
malleable, which allows it to be pressed or hammered into shape by
machines or hand tools. For example, this is the process blacksmiths
use to create and shape horseshoes. In rolling, slabs of metal travel
through a set of rollers that flatten them into thin sheets, or bend them
around into tubes.
Mineral Resources From the Ocean
Oceans cover 70% of the Earths surface, host a vast variety of geologic
processes responsible for the formation and concentration of mineral
resources, and are the ultimate repository of many materials eroded
or dissolved from the lands surface. Oceans contain vast amounts of
materials that are major resources for humans. Today, direct extraction
of resources is limited to salt; magnesium; placer gold, tin, titanium,
and diamonds; and freshwater.
A hydrothermal vent is a geyser on the seafloor. It continuously
spews superhot, mineral-rich water that helps support a diverse community of organisms. Although most of the deep sea is sparsely populated, these hot vent sites teem with a fascinating array of life.
The first hydrothermal vent was discovered in 1977. Hydrothermal
vents exist in both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. Most are found at an
average depth of about 7,000 feet (2,100 m) in areas of seafloor spreading along the mid-ocean ridge system. The water that issues from
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CHAPTER
The Uses
of Minerals
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v entilation ducts; and a vast network of copper pipes, wires, and cables
that supply them with water, light, and power. Minerals and mineralbased materials used in construction include cement, sand, clay, tile,
lime, glass, aluminum, iron and steel, lead, and zinc.
Many of the goods and products we use each day are made from
minerals. Stoves, televisions, refrigerators, microwave ovens, washing
Minerals used
Carpet
Glass/Ceramics Silica sand, limestone, talc, lithium, borates, soda ash, feldspar
Linoleum
Toothpaste
Countertops
Household cleaners
Wallboard
Microwavable container
Aluminum, iron
Television
Telephone
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Many of the standard products used in homes each day originated from
minerals, metals, or elements, such as these common household cleaning
supplies that you might find under your bathroom sink. (Photo courtesy of
Natures Images)
is calculated using a Global Positioning System (GPS); a military missile is launched; or a rocket is sent into outer spaceminerals made
that possible. The following list represents just a few of all the many
minerals involved:
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Medical Applications
Minerals, metals, and elements affect everyones healthsometimes in
obvious ways, sometimes in not-so-obvious ways. For example, minerals are involved each time someone brushes their teeth, gets an X-ray
at a hospital, receives an eye exam, needs a cast for a broken arm, takes
an antacid for an upset stomach, or fills a prescription. In fact, without
minerals, many things in the medical field would not be possible, and
life expectancies would be much shorter than they are today. A few of
the minerals involved in the practice of medicine every day are:
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SUMMARY
From household items, to industrial applications, to science and technology, to medical applications, to food productionminerals are
everywhere. If you think about what you do each day, the products
you use, and the things you do for entertainmentif you look closely
you will be amazed at how many minerals are in your life. The next
time you fill your car with gasoline, plan a vacation, go to the dentist
for a filling, or to the doctor for a medical procedure or a prescription,
thank the existence of the Earths minerals and the human ingenuity it
took to discover, develop, and use them. It is a fact that we would not
have the standard of living we enjoy today without the contribution
of minerals.
CHAPTER
The Importance
of Minerals
his chapter will focus on some of the other goods and services
that minerals, metals, and elements supplyboth tangible and
intangible. It will look at the way archaeologists, geologists, and
paleontologists use the Earths natural elements to obtain reliable dates
for ancient objectsa scientific process called radioactive decay; the
employment opportunities and community support made available
from major mining corporations; the role minerals play in cultural
enrichment, architecture, jewelry, and art; and finally, the critical role
that minerals play each day to ensure good human health.
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Stable Daughter
Half-life
Carbon 14
Nitrogen 14
5,730 years
Potassium 40
Argon 40
Rubidium 87
Strontium 87
Thorium 232
Lead 208
14 billion years
Uranium 235
Lead 207
Uranium 238
Lead 206
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There are three methods used in radiometric dating: (1) uraniumlead (U-Pb) dating; (2) potassium-argon (K-Ar) dating, and (3) radiocarbon dating.
Uranium-lead (U-Pb) dating is used primarily on igneous rocks
and is used to date objects thought to be very old. Uranium-238
(U-238) has a half-life of 4.5 billion years. In other words, after 4.5
billion years time, half of the U-238 would have decayed to lead-206.
This method makes three assumptions: (1) there is a constant decay
rate, (2) there is no loss or gain of uranium or lead during the life of
the rock, and (3) it is assumed that no lead existed in the specimen
when it was formed.
Potassium-argon (K-Ar) dating is used to date igneous and volcanic rocks. When a rock melts, all the argon-40 gas escapes the lava
and enters the atmosphere. From that point on, K-40 decays and forms
new Ar-40. The ratio of K-40 to Ar-40 can then be measured and an
estimate drawn as to how long ago the rock was molten. This dating
method is used on extremely old rocks.
Radiocarbon dating is the third technique. Normal carbon has a
molecular weight of 12 (C-12). Radiometric carbon has a molecular
weight of 14 (C-14). C-14 is formed in the Earths atmosphere when
ionizing radiation strikes nitrogen-14 and converts it to C-14, which
then combines with oxygen to form radioactive carbon dioxide. Living
things are in equilibrium with the atmosphere, and the radioactive
carbon dioxide is absorbed and used by plants. The radioactive carbon
dioxide gets into the food chain and the carbon cycle. All living things
contain a constant ratio of carbon-14 to carbon-12. At death, carbon14 exchanges cease and any carbon-14 in the tissues of the organism
begins to decay to nitrogen-14, and is not replenished by new C-14. It
is this change in the carbon-14 to carbon-12 ratio that is the basis for
dating. The half-life is so short that this method can only be used on
materials younger than 50,000 years. Archaeological dating uses this
method, as well as dating the ice ages of the Pleistocene epoch. This
dating technique assumes that the atmospheric C-14/C-12 ratio is
known in the past, or that it is stable.
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The Kennecott mine in Bingham Canyon, Salt Lake County, Utah, is the worlds
largest open-pit copper mine. (Courtesy of Natures Images)
A hauler at the Kennecott copper mine is roughly the size of a small house.
(Courtesy of Natures Images)
The tires used on the ore haulers are enormous. A steel-belted radial tubeless
tire: each one measures 12.5 feet (3.8 m) in height, has a diameter of 153
inches (389 cm), weighs 10,183 pounds (4,619 kg), has a tread width of 55
inches (140 cm), and has a rim size of 63 inches (160 cm). Each tire lasts about
one year (50,000 miles (80,467 km)) and costs $25,000. The haulers have six
tires on them at a cost of $150,000 per year for each truck. (Photo courtesy of
Natures Images)
loaded with 1,000 pounds (454 kg) of special explosives. Two to four
times a day, the explosives are detonated to break up the rock for the
mining operations.
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Mining the ore, using huge electric shovels and king-sized haulage trucks, is just the first step in the production of copper. The
metal-bearing ore, which contains less than 1% copper, is delivered
to the in-pit crusher. The rock is loaded onto a conveyor that travels
3 miles (4.8km) through a tunnel in the mountain to the Copperton
Concentrator. Ore is crushed to about the size of soccer balls. The inpit crusher reduces the ore to about 10 inches (25.4 cm) and deposits
it onto a 5-mile (8 km) conveyor.
The crushed ore is then mixed with water and ground to a powder.
Through a flotation process, the ore is concentrated to 28% copper
by removing unwanted materials. In the process, a valuable by-product,
molybdenum, is recovered and sold to steel manufacturers as a hardening agent. The concentrated ore, mixed with water, is pumped 17 miles
(27 km) through a pipeline to the smelter near the Great Salt Lake.
The 28% copper concentrate is heated to a molten state and
additional impurities (primarily iron and sulfur) are removed in a
revolutionary flash smelting and converting process. The molten copper, 99.5% pure, is poured into forms called anodes, then cooled and
shipped to the nearby electrolytic refinery.
Anodes are subjected to an electrolytic process where the copper is
refined to a purity of 99.99%. During the process, precious metals, such
as gold and silver, are also recovered as by-products. The finished copper cathodes are then shipped to manufacturers that produce a broad
range of industrial, aviation, military, and construction products, as
well as other copper, brass, and bronze consumer products we all use
every day.
Annually, Kennecott produces 300,000 tons (272,155 metric tons)
of copperwhich represents 17% of the total U.S. copper output.
They have the safest and most efficient processes in the world. They
also strive to be the cleanest. They have specially designed furnaces
that completely control the wastes and emissions. The waste sulfur
is sold to farmers as fertilizer, adding another economic benefit to
the community.
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charities, education, and the arts, they look for one or two larger projects
each year that will leave a lasting legacy in the community. The Kennecott
Nature Center was one of these projects. Their involvement benefits
other communities as well. For example, they are currently involved in
reclaiming and cleaning up many mining sites located throughout the
United States, such as in Nevada, Wyoming, and Alaska.
Cultural Enrichment
Many cultures worldwide incorporate minerals into their beliefs. One
example is the Native-American culture of North American tribes; in
particular, the Zuni tribe of the Southwest and their use of fetishes
(small animal stone carvings). Traditional Native-American culture
holds that all things have a spirit. They believe animals have more
power than humans and that these powers reside in fetishes.
The Zuni use fetishes for many purposescarvings from different minerals have specific meanings. In general, for Native-American
tribes, fetishes are believed to offer powerful aid in hunting, diagnosing
and curing disease, mediating between gods and emissaries, initiation
of war, farming, weather control, fire-making, propagation and fertility, defense against witchcraft, and punishment. They are believed to
protect individual owners or entire communities (regarding rain and
bountiful harvests).
The intrigue of fetishes has also spread to other cultures. Today,
according to the Wall Street Journal, a growing number of mainstream
business executives and professionals buy and use Native-American
fetish carvings for career success. For example, one attorney claims
that her bear fetish helps her balance aggression and patience in the
courtroom. A professional photographer uses the buffalo fetish as a
symbol of abundance, hoping to land many projects. A computer software executive takes an eagle fetish to trade shows to help him receive
greater insight into what is going on. Many people use fetishes as spiritual guides. Fetishes can be carved from a variety of rocks and minerals, such as agate, fluorite, amber, basalt, onyx, hematite, sandstone,
gypsum, turquoise, and many others.
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Other cultures have also incorporated minerals into their traditions. Crystals, minerals, and metals have played various roles in the
myths and legends of human cultures throughout historysuch as
with the Greeks, Romans, and Egyptians. They are fascinating examples
of the attempts of various cultures to explain their world without the
benefit of modern science and its fields such as astronomy, meteorology, geology, oceanography, and chemistry. Archaeologists have used
past evidence of these beliefs to better understand the psychology of
ancient peoples. Today, some people believe quartz has the power to
heal and carnelian gives its owner better self-esteem.
Minerals in Architecture
Many beautiful buildings have been created throughout the ages
through the use of rocks and minerals. Granite and marble are common building materials. These materials are not only durable and
resist weathering, but they provide highly workable materials for largescale construction. The Eiffel Tower in Paris, France, is comprised of
steela network of girders supports its nearly thousand-foot height.
Granite is a stone that is frequently used to obtain beautiful and
stunning architecture. The building in the photos on pages 107108
illustrates the beauty of granite as a building material. Because it can
be readily cut, carved, and shaped, it is possible for master craftsmen to
achieve stunning detail in buildings that will last for centuries.
Jewelry and Art
Throughout the world, various cultures have established styles or types
of jewelry that are unique to their geographical regions. These culturally unique designs arise from a combination of the background of
the people in the area and what local natural resources are available to
them to make jewelry.
Jewelry consisting of metals like gold, silver, platinum, and copper
are valued in most areas of the world. At various times in history, silver
has been valued even more than gold. It has also had a mystical allure
to it, often being associated with the sea and the Moon. Hallmarking is
Beautiful buildings can be crafted from stone, such as granite. This is a temple
in Salt Lake City, Utah (the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints). The
granite was hand-excavated and hauled 25 miles (40 km) to the construction
site in the 1800s. It took 40 years to construct. The buildings outer structure is
composed entirely of granite. The gold in the statue on the top and the gold
inlay on the wall are gold leaf. The statues in the foreground are made of
bronze. The building on the left side of the photo is also made of granite and
intricately carved. (Photo courtesy of Natures Images)
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This is the same building as shown on page 107. Notice the intricately carved
decorations on the granite wallsthe stars, spires, and scallops make this
building look like a castle. Many view architectural carving in granite as an
artistic skill. (Photo courtesy of Natures Images)
Gold has always been valued in the making of jewelry, as are various gem-
stones. This collection shows a solid gold watch and gold ingot, as well as
rings that have been set with diamond, ruby, emerald, opal, topaz, sapphire,
alexandrite, and Black Hills gold. (Courtesy of Natures Images)
where a stamped mark is placed on the silver to identify its origin and
purity. This is often an important part of determining the value of a
collectable piece.
Sterling silver is composed of 92.5% silver alloyed with copper to
strengthen it. It has one of the highest reflectivities of any metal, giving
it unmatched brilliance and making it very popular for jewelry designs.
Silver is also relatively abundant and easy to extract from ore, so it is
affordable, which makes it an ideal metal for jewelry. There are other
alloys of silver with a higher silver content than sterling. Mexican and
Brittania silver each have about 95% silver. Coin silver, on the other
hand, typically has 90% or less silver content.
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The Hope Diamond is one of the worlds most famous diamonds. At 45.52
carats, it is the largest in the world. Its deep blue color is due to trace amounts
of boron in the stone. (Photo courtesy of Calvin Hamilton, ScienceViews)
Many cultures have designated different gemstones to correspond with different months to create birthstones. One of the most
highly valued and symbolic of these gemstones is diamond. One of
the most famous diamonds in the world is the Hope Diamond. At
45.52 carats, it is the worlds largest deep blue diamond. It is more
than a billion years old, was formed deep within the Earth, and carried by a volcanic eruption to the surface in what is now present-day
India. Since the Hope Diamond was discovered in the early 1600s,
it has crossed oceans and continents and passed from kings to commoners. It has been stolen and recovered, sold and resold, cut and
recut. Through it all, the diamonds value increased. In 1958, Harry
Winston donated the Hope Diamond to the Smithsonian Institu
tion in Washington, D.C., and it now belongs to the people of the
United States.
In the pendant surrounding the Hope Diamond (which is blue due
to trace amounts of boron in the stone) are 16 white diamonds. The
necklace chain contains 45 white diamonds.
Minerals are also popular in art. For centuries, minerals have been
used to create different pigments (colors) for use in pottery, ceramics,
paints, and dyes. Hematite, yellow ocher, and other natural Earth pigments were used in the Stone-Age paintings on cave walls. The durability over time of these materials is evident in many examples found
throughout the world today. As ages passed, other pigments were discovered and incorporated into the art of the time. Many of these early
colors were as prized and sought after as rare gems.
Statuary is another popular form of art. Statues are often sculpted
of metal such as bronze. One of the most famous and well-known
statues worldwide is the Statue of Liberty in New York. The Statue of
Liberty is made of copper. Copper and its alloysbronze (copper and
tin) and brass (copper and zinc)provide warmth and versatility to
art objects and hundreds of other decorative uses. History tells us that
the ornamental and artistic uses of metal came long before industrial
applications. The Statue of Liberty is renowned as the tallest copper
statue in the world. It stands 152 feet (46 m) tall and its 200,000-pound
(90,718 kg) outer covering is formed of more than 300 hand-shaped
sheets of copper only 3/32-inch (0.23 cm) thick. It has been the symbol
of U.S. liberty since 1886.
Rocks and minerals are also used indoors as decorative pieces of art
and statues. Rocks may be displayed in their raw form, to demonstrate
their completely natural beauty, or sculpted into specific forms.
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The Statue of Liberty is the worlds tallest copper statue. The statue looks green
because over time the copper oxidizes with the air, changing its brilliant shine
to a dull pale green. (Photo courtesy of Natures Images)
Minerals are commonly crafted into pieces of art. Many people decorate with
various minerals. This photo illustrates the diversity of beautiful products
that can be created from minerals. Beginning at the left, the purple statue is
amethyst, cut from a geode; the layered obelisk is sedimentary rock; the large
sample on the back right is a cut from a geode; the white bear is composed of
ceramic (clay) and ash from the Mount St. Helens volcanic eruption in 1981;
the pirate medallion is a metal alloy; the bear behind it is metal and sandstone;
the owl is carved jet; the earrings are silver and various stones; and the clear
obelisk is quartz. (Courtesy of Natures Images)
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If someone does not receive an adequate amount of these minerals on a regular basis, they can have health problems. A well-known
example is calcium. If someone does not get enough calcium, his or her
bones can be weak. This can lead to diseases such as osteoporosis.
There are 92 elements found in nature, and an additional 22
theoretical and/or observed elements. In addition, there are hundreds
of isotopes of the elements, any one of which may play a future role
in good human health. Researchers have found increasing evidence
Potassium
This keeps the muscles and nervous system healthy. It also helps make
sure the amount of water in the blood and body tissues is balanced
correctly. Foods rich in potassium include the following:
Broccoli
Potatoes
Citrus fruits (lemons, oranges, and grapefruit)
Legumes (beans, peas, lentils, and peanuts)
Dried fruits
Leafy green vegetables
Tomatoes
Bananas
Zinc
Zinc helps the immune system to fight off disease. It also promotes cell
growth and speeds up the healing process for wounds. Foods that are
rich in zinc include the following:
Beef
Pork
Lamb
Legumes (beans, peas, lentils, and peanuts)
(Source: The Nemours Foundation)
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they are necessary in only small amounts, they are very important.
Some of the most important minerals include chloride, chromium,
copper, iodine, iron, magnesium, manganese, molybdenum, phosphorus, potassium, selenium, silica, sodium, and zinc.
Chloridealong with potassium and sodiumis an electrolyte.
An electrolyte is a mineral that dissolves in water and carries an electrical charge. Since the body is mostly made up of water, electrolytes
are found everywhere in the bodyinside the cells, the spaces between
the cells, in the blood, in lymph glands, and everywhere else. Because
electrolytes have electrical charges, they can move easily back and forth
through membranes. This is important because as they move out of
cells, they carry out waste products and excess water. To keep body fluid
levels in balance, cells need to have a little potassium inside them and a
lot of sodium in the fluids outside them. To keep the balance, sodium
and potassium constantly move back and forth through the cell membranes. Chloride in the diet works with potassium and sodiumthe
two electrolytesto control the flow of fluid in blood vessels and tissue, as well as regulating acidity in the body. Chloride also forms part
of the hydrochloric acid in the stomach.
Chromium is an essential nutrient required for normal sugar and
metabolism and works by ensuring insulin acts correctly and is present
throughout the entire body, but with the highest concentrations in the
liver, kidneys, spleen, and bones. Chromium is needed for energy, as it
maintains stable blood sugar levels. It helps control certain enzymes;
and is also required in the synthesis of fats, protein, and carbohydrates.
Chromium is only needed in small amounts, but it has proven to be
important in preventing hypoglycemia and diabetes.
Copper is required in the formation of hemoglobin, red blood cells,
and bones. It also helps wounds to heal. It is essential for energy production, connective tissue formation, iron metabolism, and also acts
as an antioxidant. Copper is also important for the manufacture of the
neurotransmitter noradrenaline.
Iodine is required to make the thyroid hormones that regulate
metabolism. The thyroid hormones play a big role in growth, cell
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reproduction, nerve function, and how cells use oxygen. One of the
thyroid hormonesthyroxinregulates how fast the body uses the
energy from food.
Iron is required to carry oxygen in the blood. Every one of the red
blood cells in the body contains a protein called hemoglobin. In the
lungs, oxygen molecules attach to the iron atoms and are carried to the
blood cells. When the oxygen reaches its destination, it is swapped for
the waste carbon monoxide and carried back to the lungs where it is
removed by inhalation.
Every cell in the body needs magnesium to produce energy. It is
required to make more than 300 different enzymes and to send messages along the nerves. Magnesium makes the muscles relax, which
ensures the heart is healthy. It is also needed to keep blood pressure
down to normal levels. Magnesium works very close with calcium to
help keep bones strong throughout life.
Manganese plays an important role in a number of physiological
processes as a constituent of some enzymes and an activator of other
enzymes. Manganese-activated enzymes play important roles in the
metabolism of carbohydrates, amino acids, and cholesterol. It enables
the body to better use vitamin C and vitamin B1. Manganese is also
necessary for healthy bone and cartilage development, as well as wound
healing. It assists in preventing diabetes and it is needed for normal
nerve function.
Phosphorus is an essential mineral that is required by every cell
in the body for normal function. It plays an active role in bone and
teeth formation, as well as most metabolic actions in the body. It is also
involved in converting food to energy.
Potassium, along with sodium and chloride, is an electrolyte.
(Electrolytes are found everywhere in the body.) Because potassium
can move back and forth through cell membranes, it is able to carry
nutrients in with it and carry out waste products and excess water.
Potassium helps keep body fluid levels in balance.
Selenium is another important mineral. It helps fight infections by
stimulating increased antibody response. One of the main activities of
selenium is its role in antiaging and its ability to help rid the body of
dangerous chemicals known as free radicals, as well as toxic minerals
such as mercury, lead, and cadmium.
Silica helps keep bones, cartilage, tendons, and artery walls healthy.
The nails, hair, and skin also require to stay in good condition.
Zinc is very important for correct functioning of the immune system. Taking extra zinc during a bad cold or flu can help quicken healing. It also helps the body heal quicker from wounds, keeps the skin
healthy, and helps preserve eyesight. More than 200 different enzymes
in the body depend on zinc to work properly. It is not hard to see why
minerals are important to strong bodies and good health.
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CHAPTER
Management
of Mineral
Resources
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Geographic Information Systems and 3-D modeling are often used in mining
applications. Computer models can be developed to locate various concentra-
tions of ores and evaluate the slope of the land. Once the highest concentra-
tions of ore are found, the contours of the land are used to decide where best
to start digging. (a) A triangular network is a GIS modeling technique used to
depict the subtle changes in surface character of the Earth. (b) By modeling
the lands contours, as seen in this mine pit design, the exact placement of the
levels of the open pit can be mapped out prior to digging. (c) This drawing
illustrates where mining engineers will dig the pit and place the stockpile of
removed earth material. (d) Excavating equipment called a dragline helps min-
ing engineers determine how to most efficiently dig the mineral. (a, courtesy
of AERO-METRIC, Inc.; b, c, d, courtesy of Carlson Software)
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One of the biggest obstacles the United States faces today is addressing the issue of cleaning up old, abandoned minesmining operations
in existence well before the environmental dangers had been realized,
studied, and controlled. In many cases, the companies that operated
these mines are not around today. This makes it hard to assign liability
for the costs of cleaning up the site.
Two materials that pose a problem for waste management are lead
and asbestos. Lead is a highly toxic metal that was used for many years
in products found in and around homes. Lead may cause a range of
health effects, from behavioral problems and learning disabilities to
seizures and death. Children six years old and younger are most at risk
because their bodies are growing quickly. Researchers suggest that the
primary sources of lead exposure for most children are from deteriorating lead-based paint, lead-contaminated dust, and lead-contaminated
residential soil.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is playing a
major role in addressing these residential lead hazards and has had a
considerable amount of success. For example, in 2002, about 310,000
children were tested as having elevated blood lead levels in the United
States. Two decades earlier, almost 4 million people were diagnosed
with unhealthy lead levels. Under the EPAs direction, the amount of
lead has been reduced in drinking water and in industrial air pollution. The EPA has also banned (or limited) the amount of lead used
in consumer products, such as residential paint. To further address the
lead problem, states and communities have set up programs to identify
and treat lead-poisoned children and to rehabilitate deteriorated housing. Parents have helped to reduce their childrens exposure to lead by
cleaning and maintaining their homes, having their childrens blood
lead levels checked, and promoting proper nutrition.
Asbestos has been in use for centuries and has long been recognized
for its useful properties, such as the ability to resist heat and provide
beneficial insulating properties. The term asbestos describes six naturally occurring fibrous minerals. The three most commonly used are
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c ompanies were already charging higher premiums or refusing coverage to those who had jobs that exposed them to asbestos.
It was not until the 1970s that government agencies, such as the
EPA and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
began to regulate asbestos and its uses. By that time, many people
had been exposed to asbestos and asbestos-containing products for
a number of years. Cleanup of asbestos still continues today, usually
when buildings are remodeled. Presently, the United States generally
does not use asbestos in the manufacture of products due to health
concerns and liability issues. However, other countries do not have
strict controls in place against it and so imported materials may still
contain asbestos.
Reclamation Issues
For many years, the mining industry was not heavily regulated. In fact,
mines could be prospected, worked, depleted, and abandoned without
the owner facing any regulations or environmental responsibilities of
any kind. When the problems related to this began to surface, regulations began to be put into place.
U.S. Mining Laws
The General Mining Act of 1872 is a U.S. federal law that authorizes
and governs prospecting and mining for economic minerals, such as
gold and silver, on public-owned lands. Today, the acquisition of mining rights on public land in the West is mostly governed by the 1872
Act, although there have been some amendments made to the Act since
its inception. These amendments cover nonmetallic minerals; sale of
certain minerals, such as sand and gravel; and the development of multiple minerals on the same tracts of public lands. Many conservation
groups, however, feel this law has become antiquated and that there are
not enough regulations imposed on the mining industry.
In 1977, the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA)
was signed into law. This is the principal federal law that regulates the
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Abandoned mines are a serious threat to public safety and the environ-
ment. Government agencies are working on cleaning the mines, which are
often located in areas that are easily accessible to the public. This photo
shows acid mine water discharge from an abandoned mine in Montana.
(Photo by Stuart Jennings, Montana State. American Geological Institute,
http://www.earthscienceworld.org/images)
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and mid-sized abandoned hard rock mines in the western states alone.
Most sites are not currently posing problems, but of those that are, 25%
relate to health and safety matters, and 5% to environmental matters,
primarily issues of water pollution. There are some 13,000 abandoned
coal mines, mostly small and mid-sized, in the eastern states. These are
causing mainly health and safety problems.
The principle environmental issues relate to water pollution, soil
erosion, and soil contamination. There are also social and healthrelated impacts and safety issues. There are cultural, heritage, and
visual impacts. One of the biggest threats is the increase in recreational
traffic in areas with abandoned mines. As people venture further into
wilderness or recreational areassuch as riding the increasingly popular all-terrain off-road vehiclesthey are more likely to find themselves
in dangerous situations with open shafts in the ground to fall into and
toxic chemicals causing pollution in these areas.
Reclamation costs are excessive, and the United States is looking
at government programs related to public awareness and outreach;
cleanup (especially of safety hazards); water quality and hazardous
materials monitoring; and science and research initiatives with government and educational institutions, such as universities.
Abandoned mine reclamation will take the combined efforts of
many different types of professionals because the impacts of these sites
are diverse. They involve ownership issues; legal issues; climatic conditions; wildlife that has taken up residence in abandoned sites; and
archaeological, cultural, and historic preservation issues. It will take the
continued and combined efforts of many different disciplines to solve
this huge problem.
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hazard because it can contaminate the soil, water, and air, which in turn
impacts people, animals, and plants.
There are many types of sulfide minerals, but the iron sulfides,
such as pyrite and maracasite (FeS2), are common in coal regions and
are the main AMD producers. When contaminants are exposed to
water and oxygen, pyretic minerals oxidize to form acidic, iron- and
sulfate-rich drainage.
The quality of the water that drains from underground mines or
backfills of surface mines depends on the acid-producing (sulfide) and
alkaline (carbonate) minerals that are contained in the disturbed rock.
The areas that are richer in sulfide materials are the areas that are the
most toxic, because these materials produce acid.
The acidity in abandoned mine areas occurs as two types: (1) mineral acidity, and (2) hydrogen ion acidity. Mineral acidity depends on
the specific geologic materials in the area. For example, the presence
of iron, aluminum, and manganese are important in the occurrence
of acidity.
According to scientists at Lehigh University in Pennsylvania,
approximately 12,428 miles (20,000 km) of streams and rivers in the
United States are degraded by AMD. This is critical, because if AMD
is not treated, the surface and groundwater sources will continue to be
contaminated, causing serious health effects for people and polluting
the ecosystems they live in. The detrimental results include contaminated drinking water; negative impacts on plants and animals that live
by and in the rivers; and corrosion and weakening of bridges, monuments, and buildings nearby.
One example of this problem is found in the Wasatch Mountains
in Utah (part of the Rocky Mountain chain). Before mining was
strictly regulated, many prospectors worked the canyons in the area in
search of gold, silver, and copper. Thousands of these mines have been
abandoned, many of them over 100 years old. Many are on federal
lands. In one instance, the U.S. Forest Service closed off a mine so that
hikers could not go inside and fall down the shafts, but the area was
never cleaned up. Today, the drainage leaking from the mines opening
is contaminated with acid mine drainage. This toxic drainage impacts
the soil, surface water, and groundwater in the area. Not only is the
watershed located in a drainage designated for municipal drinking
water, but the area is also adjacent to a designated wilderness area and
has a rich ecosystem of plants and a wide diversity of wildlife, such as
cougar, bobcat, moose, deer, elk, raccoon, beaver, squirrels, and chipmunks. Currently, federal government agencies, such as the U.S. Forest
Service and the BLM are cleaning up these mines, but the process is
very expensive and involved and will take a long time to remediate
(clean up) the tens of thousands of abandoned mines that exist on
federal lands.
Fortunately, there are existing methods to treat this toxic drainage. Different chemicals can be added to water. The specific types of
conditionssuch as acidity levels, water flow, types of metals, degree
of treatment needed, and desired final water qualityultimately determine which chemicals will work best for a given mine. This makes each
cleanup effort unique. The key to fixing the problem is to add enough
alkalinity to raise water pH and supply hydroxides (OH-). This enables
the dissolved metals in the water to form insoluble metal hydroxides
and settle out of the water. The pH required to precipitate most metals
from water ranges from pH 6 to 9 (in the pH scale, the two ends of the
scale represent total acidity on one end and total alkalinity on the other,
making the goal to shift the acidic conditions to the alkaline side). In
these applications, treatment must be carefully monitored until desired
results are reached.
There is also a passive approach to treat AMD through the use of
aerobic wetlands. An aerobic wetland is a large surface area pond with
horizontal surface flow. The pond is planted with wetland vegetation,
such as cattails. Aerobic wetlands, however, can only treat water that
is entirely alkaline. In this system, metals are precipitated through
oxidation reactions to form oxides and hydroxides. Aerating the water
before it reaches the wetland, by having it travel down falls and rapids
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Reclamation of a mining site. The areas in the photo are revegetation test plots
of the Streambank Tailing and Revegetation Study (STARS) at Ramsay Flats in
Montana. (Photo by Stuart Jennings, Montana State. American Geological
Institute, http://www.earthscienceworld.org/images)
grow hay and provide pasture for livestock. Others have become prairies. Whatever the physical characteristics of the landflat, hilly, rocky,
vegetatedserious and well-planned reclamation and rehabilitation
efforts can contain and improve previously mined lands.
In order to successfully rehabilitate the land, several things must
happen. All mine openings and underground workings must be permanently sealed off so that there are no open pits or similar features
that could harm humans, animals, or the environment. All the material
plus equipment left at the surface must be removed. Surface buildings and structures must be dismantled and removed from the site.
Tailings, slurry ponds, waste dumps, stock piles, and any other surface
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CHAPTER
Conservation
of Mineral
Resources
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Conflicts of Interest
Multiple Land-Use Issues
Another major conservation issue concerns public lands and the multiple ways they are used. Federally owned land, administered by the
U.S. government, is considered public land. These lands are managed
for many uses that can occur simultaneously in order to provide the
best use of these areas for the most people. For example, an area with
mountains, rivers, or lakes might provide recreational benefits for
people, as well as environmental benefits for wildlife and ecosystems, if
managed properly. Other areas may consist of open prairie and provide
grazing opportunities for cattle and sheep owned by ranchers who have
leased land from the federal government for this purpose. These very
same areas may also be rich in mineral resources, and those interested
in obtaining these resources may want to lease the land from the federal
government to set up mining operations.
Most land is suitable for multiple uses, such as recreational activities (hiking, camping, boating, fishing, rafting, canoeing), sources of
clean water, wildlife (both terrestrial and aquatic), and minerals. The
federal government does its best to try to meet the needs of all U.S.
citizens, while at the same time providing responsible management and
stewardship of the land.
A problem has emerged recently, however, that has made many
people concerned about the future of the environment and the role
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Oil and gas exploration is one of the many uses of public lands. (Courtesy of
Bureau of Land Management)
the government is playing in itthe current worldwide energy situation. Due to rising energy costs, political unrest in the Middle East (the
source of most of the worlds petroleum), and increased environmental
awareness, the government is looking for new energy sources within
the United Statesboth conventional and renewable energy resources.
Because of this, many placesparticularly in the Westare being
looked at for potential oil and gas drilling, as well as oil shale, coal, and
tar sands recovery. Many Americans are concerned about impacts to
the environment if large operations are begun for new mineral exploration and development.
Of particular concern are areas that have intangible value, such as
wilderness potential and natural scenic beauty. Oftentimes, some of the
most beautiful natural landscapes have vast resources of coal, oil, gas,
and other minerals buried under them. Whether to develop these mineral resources is a source of controversy. One example of this is the Grand
Staircase-Escalante National Monument in southern Utah, signed into
existence by President Bill Clinton in 1996. Although many citizens were
happy to see the monument designated (which protects the land from
mineral development), others felt the opposite. Geologists at the Bureau
of Land Management (the agency who manages the monument) have
determined that the value of known and potential energy and mineral
Lanthanides
Silver
Antimony
Lithium
Strontium
Barite
Manganese
Tantalum
Beryllium
Mercury
Tellurium
Cobalt
Mica
Tin
Columbium
Molybdenum
Tungsten
Copper
Nickel
Vanadium
Gallium
Platinum
Yttrium
Germanium
Quartz crystals
Zinc
Gold
Rhenium
Zirconium
Indium
Selenium
Iron
Silicon
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Coal
Coal-bed gas
Petroleum
Minerals
The monument extends across 1.7 million acres of some of the most
energy-rich lands in the lower 48 states. Heated debates occur over the
pros and cons of protecting (conserving) the lands mineral resources
versus utilizing them to their fullest economic potentialan issue that
will not likely be resolved soon. These are the issues that future land
managers will have to consider when trying to find the right balance
concerning conservation and land use.
143
144
minerals
Reduce
Buy the largest size package and products that do more
than one thingfor example, shampoos that include
conditioners; or detergents that already contain bleach.
Buy concentrated products or compact packages, such as
frozen juices, floor cleaners, and fabric softeners that can
be mixed with water at home.
Look for products with minimal packaging. This uses
fewer natural resources, and there is less to throw away.
When mowing the lawn, leave grass clippings on the
ground instead of bagging them. This is also beneficial to
the environment because grass clippings decompose
quickly, and add nutrients to the soil.
Reuse
Buy reusable products such as rechargeable batteries.
Pass on magazines, catalogs, and books to neighbors,
hospitals, schools, and nursing homes.
Reuse plastic or glass containers for storing food, nails,
and other items.
145
146
minerals
Repair
Try to repair before considering replacing lawn mowers,
tools, vacuum cleaners, TVs, and other mechanical or
electrical items.
Donate items that cannot be repaired at home to local
charities or vocational schools (someone there may be able
to repair and use them).
Keep appliances in good working order. Properly
maintained appliances are less likely to wear out or break
and will not have to be replaced as frequently.
Recycle
Shop for items that are recyclable or made from
recycled materials.
Recycle newspapers, plastics, glass, and cans.
If a recycling program does not exist in your community,
contact community officials to see if one could be started.
Compost
Compost yard and kitchen waste. Compost makes an
excellent fertilizer and improves the soil.
If there is no room for a compost pile, offer compostable
materials to community composting programs or garden
projects nearby.
Recycling Metals
In the United States alone, more than 6 million tons (5,500,000 metric
tons) of aluminum is used each year, and 50% of that is made from
recycled aluminum products. While individual consumers play a large
% Recycled
Aluminum
50
Antimony
43
Chromium
26
Cobalt
25
Copper
24
Gold
60
100
Lead
65
Magnesium metal
24
Mercury
16
Nickel
30
67
Selenium
20
Silver
49
Tin
35
Tungsten
33
Zinc
29
(Source: Minerals Information Institute)
147
148
minerals
CHAPTER
Conclusion:
The Future of
Minerals
ach day, new uses for minerals are discovered and developed.
Increasing use, however, means increased pressure on these natural resources. The reality is that if humans deplete a nonrenewable
resource now, the resource will not be available for future use. It is important that humans continue to find new ways to use minerals more efficiently and how to recycle, reuse, and conserve. This chapter examines the
questions scientists are facing now: How many known mineral reserves
do we have and how long (at present consumption rates) will they last?
How many undiscovered minerals still exist? How will technology affect
future mining and search methodologies? What about exploring the
Moon and other planets or the deep sea for untapped mineral resources?
And finally, what are green minerals and how do they fit into the future?
150
minerals
look at the historical use of the mineral resource and critically reexamine that areas potential for additional resources not yet discovered.
Specialists also consider the role and impact that more effective extraction technologies, recycling, and substitutions will have on extending
future resource use.
In the United States, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) uses a classification scheme that assesses the following: (1) the degree of certainty
about the existence and magnitude of supplies of those materials, and
(2) the economic feasibility of recovering them. Reserves are defined
as those supplies known to exist and to be both economically and
technologically recoverable at the present time. Resources are defined
to include all known, inferred, and theoretically possible supplies of
the same substances, whether or not they are now economically and
technologically recoverable. Therefore, the resources of a given mineral
include its reserves, plus additional quantities that may (or may not) at
some time become reclassifiable as reserves.
151
152
minerals
Nonfuel resources
Australia Bauxite, aluminum, iron ore, copper, tin, silver, uranium, nickel,
tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, magnesite
Bangladesh
Titanium
Bhutan
Bolivia
Canada Salt, coal, gold, barite, copper, sulfur, silicon, zinc, tellurium, titanium,
cobalt
Chile
Colombia
Congo Kinshasa
East Timor
Ecuador
Europe (Eastern)
Europe (Western) Graphite, gypsum, iron, magnesium, copper, dolomite, lead, iron,
marble, zinc, cadmium, nickel, tungsten
Fiji
Gold, copper
Greenland Platinum group metals, iron ore, rare earths, gold, graphite, chromite
India Iron ore, manganese, mica, bauxite, titanium ore, chromite,
diamonds, limestone-dolomite-marble, barite, cement, garnet,
graphite, rare earth elements, salt, talc, wollastonite
Indonesia
Iran
Laos
Malaysia
Marshall Islands
Phosphate
Nepal
New Caledonia Nickel, chrome, iron, cobalt, manganese, silver, gold, copper
New Zealand
Peru
Philippines
Pitcairn Islands
Solomon Islands
Sri Lanka
Gemstones
Venezuela
153
154
minerals
objective of GMRAP is to outline the regional locations and estimate the probable amounts of the worlds remaining undiscovered
nonfuel mineral resources to a depth of 0.62 miles (1 km) below the
Earths surface. This is the first international project of its kind. The
table on pages 152153 summarizes nonfuel resources that have been
identified worldwide.
Biological Leaching
Removal of materials by dissolving them away from solids is called
leaching. Biological leachingalso called heap leachingcan be used
to recover metals from their ores. In this process, bacterial leaching is
first used to oxidize sulphide minerals. Cyanide solution is then used to
leach the metals from the mineral heap.
The theory and practice of leaching has existed for many years; this
process has been already used long term to separate metals from their
ores. In heap leaching, the solid is in a stationary pile and the solvent
percolates through it. Once it becomes concentrated at the bottom, it
is then removed.
Nuclear Blasting
Nuclear blasting is another possible future mining method. In this
method, a nuclear explosion is triggered beneath the surface of the
Earth, releasing huge amounts of heat and pressure. Rock in the
vicinity is melted, and rock up to 150 feet (46 m) away is shattered
and crushed. The top of the cavity collapses to form a chimney about
400 feet (122m) high. In experiments, this has created 200,000 tons
(181,436 metric tons) of fragmented rock. The possible use of nuclear
explosives include large-scale excavation, increasing the yield of oil
wells, extraction of oil from tar sands, extraction of oil from oil shale,
and power production and breaking up of large low-grade ore deposits. Environmental concerns, however, may restrict development of
this method.
Moon Mining
Scientists have determined there are many natural elements located on
the Moon. The table on page 156 lists the common known elements by
percent weight.
155
156
minerals
By weight, moon rocks are about 40% oxygen. Heating the top
3 feet (1 m) of an acre of moon dust to 2,372F (1,300C) retrieves
3,000 to 3,500 tons (2,721 to 3,175 metric tons) of oxygen.
Mining helium from the moon has also caught the attention of
scientists. It is believed that the extraction of 1.10 tons (1 metric ton) of
helium-3the equivalent amount of energy needed to provide about
1/25 of the annual U.S. electricity consumptionwill require the mining of about one acre of the lunar surface to a depth of 9 feet (3m).
Some scientists envision the use of a self-contained mobile mining
unit, which moves around the Moons surface. Others envision a spiral
mining configuration. With spiral mining, the mobile mining machine
would be attached to the central station by a telescoping support arm.
The miner would extract the lunar material by operating the mining
arm. Using solar thermal energy, the arm would have the ability to
Percent by weight
Aluminum
7.3
Calcium
8.5
Chromium
0.2
Iron
12.1
Magnesium
4.8
Manganese
0.2
Oxygen
40.8
Potassium
0.1
Silicon
19.6
Sodium
0.3
Titanium
4.5
Total
98.4
(Source: National Aeronautics and Space Administration)
Asteroid Mining
Scientists are also looking toward outer space for sources of minerals.
One option that has received considerable attention lately is asteroid
mining. This technique would process the ore on-site (in space) and
bring back only the processed materials, as well as produce fuel propellant for the return trip.
An asteroid the size of a football stadium filled with ore (about 328
feet or 100 m wide, tall, and long), can contain 2,000,000 tons (1,814,369
metric tons) of material. The surface gravity of an asteroid this size would
be practically zeroless than one ten-thousandth that of the Moon. The
escape velocity would be 0.2 miles per hour (0.3 km per hour). Because
of this, material could theoretically be easily moved around. In addition,
erected structures are not subject to the force of gravity.
Staying attached to, and moving around, the asteroid could be
accomplished by harpoons or anchors, or by using one or more cables
around the asteroid with flat plates or rocks to keep the cable from digging in, or a net. With rocky asteroids, gripping the surface like a rock
climber is a suggested method.
Some studies have suggested that the asteroids rotation could be
stopped in order to attach solar-powered processing equipment to the
asteroid and have it always facing the Sun to employ solar power. An
early NASA study recommended despinning the asteroid by anchoring
a cable, wrapping it around the asteroid, and having a rocket-powered
space Jeep slow it down and stop its rotation.
Theoretically, mining and processing an asteroid in space is less
cumbersome than processing ore on Earth. Heavy mining and transport machinery is not needed; neither is complex chemical processing
to get valuable materials. Waste disposal is done by putting the waste
into a bag.
Experts believe a typical asteroid would have a crumbly texture,
consisting of silicate embedded with nickel-iron. Proposed feasible
157
158
minerals
Granular sediments
Placer minerals
Hydrothermal deposits
Hydrogenetic minerals
159
160
minerals
161
162
minerals
depths. He envisions the use of deep-sea versions of robotic coalmining machines with the ore piped up to mining ships, or semisubmersible platforms, like those used by the offshore oil industry.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administra
tion, as deep-sea technology progresses, submersibles will be further
refined and improved in order to explore the oceans for minerals.
Currently, an underwater mining vehicle capable of mining and
pumping sand from the ocean floor through a flexible riser system has
been developed as the first step toward development of technology for
deep-sea mining.
163
164
minerals
165
Appendix
Common Elements
Element
Symbol
Metal or
nonmetal
State at room
temperature
Hydrogen
Nonmetal
Gas
Helium
He
Nonmetal
Gas
Lithium
Li
Metal
Solid
Carbon
Nonmetal
Solid
Nitrogen
Nonmetal
Gas
Oxygen
Nonmetal
Gas
Fluorine
Nonmetal
Gas
Neon
Ne
Nonmetal
Gas
Sodium
Na
Metal
Solid
Magnesium
Mg
Metal
Solid
Aluminum
Al
Metal
Solid
Silicon
Si
Metalloid
Solid
Phosphorus
Nonmetal
Solid
Sulfur
Nonmetal
Solid
Chlorine
Cl
Nonmetal
Gas
Argon
Ar
Nonmetal
Gas
Potassium
Metal
Solid
Calcium
Ca
Nonmetal
Solid
Iron
Fe
Metal
Solid
Copper
Cu
Metal
Solid
Zinc
Zn
Metal
Solid
Bromine
Br
Nonmetal
Liquid
Silver
Ag
Metal
Solid
Tin
Sn
Metal
Solid
Iodine
Nonmetal
Solid
Gold
Au
Metal
Solid
Mercury
Hg
Metal
Liquid
Lead
Pb
Metal
Solid
166
Appendix 167
Air
Water
Acid
Potassium
Burns easily
Violent reaction
Sodium
Burns easily
Violent reaction
Calcium
Burns easily
Violent reaction
Magnesium
Burns easily
Very reactive
Aluminum
Reacts slowly
Very reactive
Zinc
Reacts slowly
Quite reactive
Iron
Reacts slowly
Quite reactive
Lead
Reacts slowly
Copper
Reacts slowly
No reaction
No reaction
Silver
No reaction
No reaction
No reaction
Gold
No reaction
No reaction
No reaction
Mineral Habits
Habit
Habit description
Acicular
Blocky
Blocky-rhombohedral
168
Appendix
Mineral Habits
(continued)
(The characteristic crystal form or combination of forms of a mineral)
Habit
Habit description
Botryoidal
Capillary
Cleavable
Columnar
Forms columns
Concretionary
Crystalline-fine
Crystalline-poor
Cubic crystals
Cylindrical
Appendix 169
Fibrous
Flakes
Foliated
Inclusions
170
Appendix
Mineral Habits
(continued)
(The characteristic crystal form or combination of forms of a mineral)
Habit
Habit description
Microscopic crystals
Mossy
Oolitic
Pistolitic
Platy
Sheet forms
Prismatic
Pseudocubic
Pseudomorphous
Appendix
Pseudooctohedral
Pseudoorthorhombic
Pseudorhombohedral
Pseudotetragonal
Pseudohexagonal
Pulverulent
Pyramidal
Kidneylike in shape
Skeletal
Spherical
Square
171
172
Appendix
Mineral Habits
(continued)
(The characteristic crystal form or combination of forms of a mineral)
Habit
Habit description
Flat-dimensioned crystals
Triangular crystals
Twinning common
Waxy
Wedge-shaped
Wheat sheaf
Mineral Luster
Luster
Luster description
Adamantine
Adamantine-greasy
Adamantine-metallic
Adamantine-pearly
Adamantine-resinous
Adamantine-silky
Completely dull
Appendix
Greasy (oily)
Surface alteration
Metallic
Specular reflection
Metallic-dull
Pearly
Resinous
Luster of resin
Resinous-greasy
Resinous-metallic
Silky-pearly
Submetallic
Subadamantine
Vitreous (glassy)
Vitreous-greasy
Vitreous-metallic
Vitreous-pearly
Vitreous-resinous
Vitreous-silky
Vitreous-waxy
Waxy
173
174
Appendix
Mineral Fracture
Fracture
Fracture description
Brittle-subconchoidal
Brittle-uneven
Flexible fragments
Fragile
Appendix
Micaceous
None
No fractures
Plastic
175
176
Appendix
Gravel (construction).
Florida Cement (portland), Clay, Limestone, Peat, Phosphates,
Appendix
Limestone, Natural Gas, Petroleum, Salt, Sand and Gravel (construction), Stone (crushed), and Zinc.
Kentucky Cement (portland), Clay, Coal, Fluorspar, Limestone,
177
178
Appendix
Appendix
Limestone, Marble, Phosphates, Pyrites, Sand and Gravel (construction), Sandstone, Stone (crushed), and Zinc.
179
180
Appendix
Glossary
acid Liquid that is sour to taste, can eat away metals, and is neutral-
by a volcano.
alkali A liquid with a pH above 7; alkalis feel soapy and slimy.
alkaline rock A type of igneous rock containing less than half silica
elements atom.
atomic weight The average weight of the isotopes of an element.
augite A dark green-colored silicate mineral containing calcium,
contains vesicles.
basic rock An igneous rock with silica content of less than two-
(e.g., calcite).
clarity A measure of how clear and free of flaws a gemstone is.
cleavage The tendency of some minerals to break along one or more
smooth surfaces.
181
182
Glossary
remains; found in sedimentary rocks; types of coal include bituminous, brown, lignite, and anthracite; a fossil fuel.
compound Substance that contains two or more different elements
of axes.
crystalline A mineral that has solidified but been unable to produce
remains of living organisms; the main fossil fuels are coal and
petroleum (oil and natural gas).
Glossary 183
without cleavage.
gangue The unwanted mineral matter found in association with a
metal.
gem A mineral, usually in crystal form, that is regarded as having
gen element (elements similar to chlorine) bonded with another element; many are evaporite minerals.
halite A mineral made of sodium chloride.
igneous rock Rock formed by the solidification of magma; igneous
homogeneous mineral.
inert The inability to combine with other elements or compounds.
ingot A piece of pure metal, such as gold, made by pouring molten
below the surface; when inserted among other rocks, intruded rocks
are called an intrusion.
184
Glossary
identifying minerals.
magma The molten material that comes from the mantle and that
ducts electricity and heat well; most metals are also hard.
metalloid An element that has some of the properties of a metal and
covite).
mineral A naturally occurring inorganic substance of definite chem-
ated minerals forms; mineral environments include igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks.
mineralization The formation of minerals within a rock.
mineralogist A person who studies the formation, occurrence, prop-
Glossary 185
open-pit mine A mine with an open top, instead of tunnels under the
Earths surface.
ore A rock containing enough useful metal or fuel to be worth
mining.
ore mineral A mineral that occurs in sufficient quantity to be mined
quickly they react with other substances; the most reactive metals
are at the top of the list.
reservoir rock A permeable rock in which petroleum accumulates.
rock A naturally occurring solid material containing one or more
minerals.
186
Glossary
or purify metal.
streak The color of the powder of a mineral produced by rubbing
the original shine and color can usually be restored with polishing.
translucent Quality of an object in which some light passes through
through it.
twinning Two or more crystals of the same mineral growing together
in a symmetrical way.
vitreous Having a glassy luster.
Further Reading
Arem, Joel. Color Encyclopedia of Gemstones. 2nd ed. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1987.
Bains, Rae. Rocks and Minerals. Mahwah, N.J.: Troll Associates, 1985.
Bingham, Caroline. Rocks and Minerals. New York: DK Publishing, 2004.
Cipriani, Curzio, and Alessandro Boreli. Gems and Precious Stones. New
York: Simon & Schuster, 1986.
Fuller, Sue. Rocks and Minerals. New York: Dorling Kindersley, 1995.
Gallant, Roy A. Minerals. Tarrytown, N.Y.: Marshall Cavendish Corporation, 2001.
Holden, Martin. The Encyclopedia of Gemstones and Minerals. New York:
Facts On File, 1991.
Hurlbut, Cornelius S. Jr., and Robert C. Kammerling. Gemology. 2nd ed.
New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1991.
Levi, Primo. The Periodic Table. New York: Random House, 1996.
McConnell, Anita. The World Beneath Us. New York: Facts On File, 1985.
Miller, Ron. The Elements: What You Really Want to Know. Minneapolis,
Minn.: Twenty-First Century Books, 2006.
Moody, Richard. The Concise Illustrated Book of Rocks and Minerals. New
York: W.H. Smith Publishers, 1990.
Oxlade, Chris. Elements and Compounds. Chicago, Ill.: Reed Educational &
Professional Publishing, 2002.
Oxlade, Chris. Metals. Chicago, Ill.: Reed Educational & Professional Publishing, 2002.
Parker, Steve. Rocks and Minerals. New York: DK Publishing, 1992.
Quinn, Susan. Marie Curie: A Life. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1995.
Schumann, Walter. Handbook of Rocks, Minerals, and Gemstones. Boston,
Mass.: Houghton Mifflin, 1993.
Sofiandes, Anna S., and George E. Harlow. Gems & Crystals From the American Museum of Natural History: An Illustrated Guide to the History, Lore,
and Properties of the Gems and Minerals of One of the Worlds Greatest Collections. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1990.
Strathem, Paul. Mendeleyevs Dream: The Quest for the Elements. New York:
St. Martins, 2001.
Stwertka, Albert. A Guide to the Elements. New York: Oxford University
Press, 2002.
187
Index
A
abandoned mines, 124, 127131
abundant elements, 1112
acid mine drainage, 129134, 154
aerobic wetlands, 133134
Africa, 24, 152
agricultural uses, 83
alkalinity, 133, 154
alloys, 14, 16, 78, 109
aluminum
consumption of, 47, 52
extraction of, 77
mining of, 31
substitutes for, 142143
uses of, 5, 86, 92
value of, 53
amber, 24, 63
ammonia, 17
amosite, 125
antimony, 69, 86, 92, 143
apatite, 62
architecture, 106
Argentina, 152
arsenic, 66, 69
asbestos, 5, 124126, 143
astercrete, 158
asteroid mining, 157159
atomic weight, 12, 96
Australia, 152
autunite, 62
B
barite, 60, 86, 92
barium, 80, 86
basalt, 5, 37
batteries, 61
bauxite, 31, 66, 86, 142143
Becquerel, Henri, 96
benches, 7172
beryllium, 87, 91, 92
Bhutan, 152
biological leaching, 155
bismuth, 5, 143
black smokers, 80
blasting, 99101, 155
Bolivia, 152
Brazil, 152
brines, 5, 7576
bronze, 111
Bronze Age, 3738
Burma, 152
C
cadmium, 54, 55
calcite, 56, 59, 87, 92
calcium, 80, 114116
California, 4041
Cambodia, 152
Canada, 152, 154
carats, 26
carbon, 1617, 96, 98
carbonates, 27, 5760, 132
Carmack, George Washington, 41
casting, 79
catalysts, 16
cement, 5, 47, 52, 72
chalcopyrite, 54
chemistry, 7, 69, 7576
Chile, 152
Chilkoot Trail, 4246
chimneys, 80
chloride, 117
chlorine, 17
chromates, 60
chromite, 57, 87
chromium, 66, 117
chrysotile, 125
classification of minerals, 5264
clay, 5, 47, 52
cleavage, 20
CLELIA, 163
coal
consumption of, 47, 52
formation of, 32
land use and, 140, 141
mining and, 75, 132
uses of, 5, 87, 92
cobalt, 87
coke, 39
colluvial deposits, 45
Colombia, 152
color, determination of, 20
columbium, 66
compounds, overview of, 67
188
Index 189
electrolysis, 77, 78
electrolytes, 102, 117
electronics industry, 8586
elements, 67, 5354
employment, 99104
emulsion, 7374
energy, 13, 140142, 159160
enrichment, 99106
environmental quality, 103, 123126,
131134, 150151
erosion, 131, 134
essential minerals, 113116
Europe, 152
extraction, 1314, 27, 6567, 7577
F
federal lands, 139142
feldspars, 27, 87
flotation, 77, 102
fluorine, 17
fluorite, 56, 57, 87, 92
fluorspar, 5
food-related uses, 83, 9394
forging, 79
fossils, 23, 25, 63, 9798
fracture, 21, 51
Frasch process, 7475
G
galena, 5, 54, 87, 92
gangue minerals, 61
gemstones, 5, 2225, 57
General Mining Act of 1872, 126
Geographic Information System (GIS),
121123
glauconite, 9798
Global Mineral Resource Assessment
Project (GMRAP), 153154
Global Positioning System (GPS),
91, 121
gold, 5, 26, 53, 69, 91, 106, 109
gold rushes, 4046, 52
Grand Staircase-Escalante National
Monument, 141142
granites, 27, 72, 106, 107108
granular sediments, 159
graphite, 5, 16, 66, 87
190
Index
gravity, 158
Great Salt Lake, 30, 5657, 58
green minerals, 163164
grinding, 77
groups, 8, 10
growth habit, 19
gypsum, 5, 57, 60, 92
H
habits, 50
halides, 5657
halite, 56, 57, 87, 92, 93
hallmarking, 106108
halogens, 17
hardness, 20, 22
health, 9293, 112119, 131
heap leaching, 155
helium, 156
hematite, 57, 8788, 93, 111
Hope diamond, 110111
hydrogenetic minerals, 159
hydrogen ion acidity, 132
hydrothermal deposits, 28, 55, 57, 61, 159
hydrothermal vents, 7980
hydroxides, 133
I
impurities, 78
India, 38, 152
Indonesia, 152
industrial ecology, 164165
Industrial Revolution, 3940, 125
industrial uses, 8690
ingots, 79, 109
inosilicates, 62
instruments, prospecting and, 69
insulation, 125
iodine, 17, 117118
ionic substitution, 20
iridium, 54
iron, 5, 1415, 47, 52, 78, 80, 114, 118
Iron Age, 38
isotopes, 96
K
kaolinite, 93
karats, 26
Index 191
Mexico, 153
micas, 62
mineralization, 4
mineraloids, 6364
Mineral Resources Data System
(MDRS), 81
mining
abandoned mines and, 127131
active management of, 121123
conservation and, 137139
employment and, 99104
future methods for, 154165
Industrial Revolution and, 39
land rehabilitation and, 134136
laws concerning, 126127
oceans and, 7980
overview of, 6768
placer deposits and, 45
pollution and, 123126, 131134
processes for, 7579
technology and, 8081
types of, 6975
mixtures, defined, 7
Mohs scale, 20, 22, 62
molybdates, 60
molybdenite, 88
molybdenum, 5, 102, 143
moon mining, 155157
Moore, William, 41
multinational corporations, 66
myths, 4243
N
Native Americans, 104106
native elements, 67
native metals, 5354
neosilicates, 62
Nepal, 153
nickel, 66
nitrogen, 17
nodules, manganese, 161
nonmetallic mineral resources, 1
nonmetals, 810, 1617, 54
nonprecious metals, 29
nonrenewable resources, 2, 4952, 148
nuclear blasting, 155
O
obsidian, 36, 64
oceans, 7980, 154155, 159163
oil shale, 140
opal, 64
opaqueness, 21
Oquirrh Mountains, 99
ores, 1314, 27, 5455, 57, 65, 157158
organics, 6263
Outer Continental Shelf, 159160
overburden, 3, 4
oxammite, 63
oxidation, 131132
oxides, 23, 57
oxygen, 14
P
Paleolithic era, 3537, 111
palladium, 16
Papua New Guinea, 153
parent elements, 96, 97
pearls, 24, 6364
pegmatites, 27
pentlandite, 54
periodic table of the elements, 812, 16
periods, 8
Peru, 153
petroleum, 3031, 52, 66, 78, 140142,
159160
petroleum fields, 30
petrology, 1718
Philippines, 153
phosphates, 47, 52, 62, 93
phosphorites, 161162
phosphorous, 17, 118
phyllosilicates, 62
pillars, 73, 75
Pitcairn Islands, 153
placer deposits, 31, 4041, 45, 159, 162
platinum, 16, 8889, 93
platinum group metals, 26
pollution, 123126, 131134
postprocessing, 79
potash, 5, 47, 57, 7576, 93
potassium, 11, 96, 115, 118, 160
potassium-argon (K-Ar) dating, 98
Potential Supply Analyses, 150151
192
Index
security, 151153
sedimentary rocks, 9798
sediment ponds, 134
seismic prospecting, 69
selenite, 60
selenium, 118119
semiconductors, 10
semimetals, 10, 54
semiprecious stones, 23
shafts, 39, 73, 74
Sierra Nevada, 40
silicates, 23, 58, 62, 89, 92, 94, 119
silicon, 80
silver, 86, 89, 92, 93, 109, 143
Skagway, 4142, 46
slag, 78
smelting, 39, 67, 76, 7778
soda ash, 89, 93
sodium, 11
sodium chloride, 56, 57, 87, 92, 93
software, 8081
Solomon Islands, 153
solution refining, 78
sorosilicates, 62
South Africa, 18, 45
specific gravity, 20, 57
spinel, 57
Sri Lanka, 153
statuary, 111
Statue of Liberty, 111, 112
steel, 1415, 38, 78, 106, 143
sterling silver, 109
Stone Age, 3537, 111
stone quarrying, 7273
Streambank Tailing and Revegetation
Study (STARS), 135
strip mining, 6971
submersible vehicles, 163
substitutes for mineral resources,
142143
sulfates, 6062
sulfides, 28, 5455, 80, 131132
sulfosalts, 55
sulfur, 47, 76, 89, 93, 103
sulfur dioxide, 17
surface mining, 6973
Index 193
V
value, 25, 53, 68
vanadium, 27, 92
variscite, 61
Venezuela, 153
Vietnam, 153
volcanoes, 23, 28, 32, 110111, 159
W
Wasatch Mountains, 132133
waste, 164165
Watt, James, 39
weapons, 3637, 38
weathering, 31
wheatleyite, 63
whewellite, 63
White Pass Trail, 4244
white smokers, 80
Witwatersrand basin, 45
Y
Yellowstone National Park, 17, 28
Yugoslavia, 37
Yukon Territory, 4146
Z
zero-gravity, 158
zero waste concept, 165
zinc
brass and, 16
consumption of, 47, 52
human health and, 115, 119
importation of, 66
ocean mineral resources and, 162
smelting of, 78
uses of, 8990
Zuni tribe, 104106
194